Two guys show what happens when you mix Diet Coke and Mentos.
Thanks to ex-talk.bizarre contributor bc for passing this out along with other neat finds.
Savepoint Funny
1 month ago
Sunday, June 04, 2006
Wednesday, May 31, 2006
ORCL: Case Study Published on Metalink
My only other blog post related to Oracle has been beefed up, cleaned up, and converted into a Case Study (Metalink DocID 369427.1). Actually that happened a couple of weeks ago, but I thought I'd mention here eventually.
I have to thank a couple of people on my team (Hector and Vickie) for pointing out the typos and suggesting improvements and finding some statspack snippets for me.
I think this is the first article on Metalink that I have actually authored myself. Okay, there is also an ancient article from 1991 on Distributed Queries that is likely obsolete and should be archived away (plus I knew even less about what I was talking about back then anyway). It is a boring challenge for me to write serious, technical articles for an external audience, but I have been asked to do more of these and I usually follow orders.
As far as future ORCL related postings go, I may still publish first drafts of potential Case Studies on my blog first to get wider feedback. If I feel safe, I may even disclose non-technical yarns about life as a front-line technical support person working in a fast-paced software company in the early 90's. Hopefully enough has changed since then that I will not expose any proprietary information or individuals even indirectly. I might even write about my theories about the origins of misconceptions or antiquated ideas about an Oracle database such as
- rebuild your indexes frequently
- keep tables and indexes separate for balance IO
- increase enqueue_resources if you see high enqueue waits
- no writes to datafiles that are in hot backup mode
- the shared pool can be too big
But such postings might be rare since I'd like to think about something other than work once in a while.
I have to thank a couple of people on my team (Hector and Vickie) for pointing out the typos and suggesting improvements and finding some statspack snippets for me.
I think this is the first article on Metalink that I have actually authored myself. Okay, there is also an ancient article from 1991 on Distributed Queries that is likely obsolete and should be archived away (plus I knew even less about what I was talking about back then anyway). It is a boring challenge for me to write serious, technical articles for an external audience, but I have been asked to do more of these and I usually follow orders.
As far as future ORCL related postings go, I may still publish first drafts of potential Case Studies on my blog first to get wider feedback. If I feel safe, I may even disclose non-technical yarns about life as a front-line technical support person working in a fast-paced software company in the early 90's. Hopefully enough has changed since then that I will not expose any proprietary information or individuals even indirectly. I might even write about my theories about the origins of misconceptions or antiquated ideas about an Oracle database such as
- rebuild your indexes frequently
- keep tables and indexes separate for balance IO
- increase enqueue_resources if you see high enqueue waits
- no writes to datafiles that are in hot backup mode
- the shared pool can be too big
But such postings might be rare since I'd like to think about something other than work once in a while.
Wednesday, May 24, 2006
TV: American Idol
After the final 12 contestants were announced, I predicted that Katherine McPhee would win and never tuned back in until the last 10 minutes tonight. I hate being wrong, but hopefully, a Taylor Hicks victory will lead to a rise in popularity for prematurely gray haired, pudgy dudes. That will make me feel much better in the long run.
Tuesday, May 23, 2006
TMI: Bay to Breakers Memories
I neglected to run the Bay to Breakers race this past Sunday. A weather report of high humidity with a chance of showers and lack of training because of tendonitis in my Achilles heel were my primary excuses for skipping this. I think since my first race in 1987 I've only participated in about 40% - 50% of the time, so it has not become some "can't miss"” ritual.
I actually did manage to finish in the top 10,000 one year despite running quite slow that year. That helped me realize that the most significant determinator of final placement was how close I could get to the starting line before the gun sounded. In high school, I could run at a 7-minute pace but always arrived really late, and started near the back of the pack. I'’d be lucky if I crossed the starting line before the winners crossed the finish line. And it would take two miles of walking before the crowds were dispersed enough to allow for some jogging. Many years and 50 pounds later I consider lucky to maintain a 6 MPH pace. But I showed up over an hour early and squeezed my way to the front. This time people were passing me up like crazy but I could start jogging much earlier, and had my best finish. I suppose this is proof that experience and ability do not always go hand in hand, but given one of the two, experience is more important.
After finishing in the top 10,000 and seeing my name in the paper, I've been satisfied with starting in the back again. It allows me to spend more time tossing tortillas like they were Frisbees. I can sit back and enjoy the music from the garage bands who set up mini-stages on balconies or driveways all along the route. It'’s also a more fun to pass people than to be passed while seeing more of the regular characters who participate in this public parade each year. There is a group that runs with a tiki hut made of bamboo and grass stocked with several forms of alcoholic refreshment. There is a caterpillar team of land sharks. They wear shark fins on their heads and you can watch those fins undulate above the sea of thousands of other racers. There is always at least one group of Elvis impersonators. There are lots of people wearing costumes that represent topical humor. One favorite a couple of years ago was a guy who was inside a huge cardboard box painted metallic grey. It had a fairly well made paper mache head resembling Arnold Schwarzenegger. Finally it had two extensible arms with foam rubber hands that could reach out and touch unsuspecting runners from behind, and was particularly fond of runners in Hooters uniforms (some of questionable gender). It was called "The Gropernator."” There usually are even runners with no costume at all, but at least 99% of them should keep covered for asthetic reasons.
This brings me to my oddest encounter with the "Rich and/or Famous"” or in this case, Infamous. After finishing the Bay to Breakers in 1993, I found myself standing right next to a man who looked vaguely familiar to me. He was taller than me but slouching a bit. He was wearing a light-blue button-down wool sweater because it was rather cold and foggy by the ocean. I thought it was still sort of an odd thing to wear while running even for this crazy race because it was so conventional. But I did not spend too much time trying to remember who he was. I was too busy catching my breath and checking out the other runners. Then I spotted a large group of teenage girls on the other side of the road. Half of them stood motionless looking in our direction with their eyes wide open and jaws dropped while the other half giggled uncontrollably and pointed us out to even more of their friends who would then have a shocked look on their face as well. At first, I guessed they recognized the "celebrity" standing next to me too, but then again, their eyes and fingers were not exactly directed at his face, but seemed to point further downward. Then they ran off and hid when they caught me looking back at them. So I suddenly had to make sure I didn't misjudge the finger pointing, so I checked if I was the one experiencing a very embarrassing wardrobe malfunction. When I looked down, I noticed out of the corner of my eye that the man standing next to me only wore a pair of leather sandals with his sweater.
I realized it was the Berkeley Naked Guy! He had made many headlines the year before with his "nude-in" protests at UC Berkeley, but the race was the first and last time I had met him in person. By that time, he was already yesterday's news -- until the day before this year'’s race, when I saw this tragic news story.
I actually did manage to finish in the top 10,000 one year despite running quite slow that year. That helped me realize that the most significant determinator of final placement was how close I could get to the starting line before the gun sounded. In high school, I could run at a 7-minute pace but always arrived really late, and started near the back of the pack. I'’d be lucky if I crossed the starting line before the winners crossed the finish line. And it would take two miles of walking before the crowds were dispersed enough to allow for some jogging. Many years and 50 pounds later I consider lucky to maintain a 6 MPH pace. But I showed up over an hour early and squeezed my way to the front. This time people were passing me up like crazy but I could start jogging much earlier, and had my best finish. I suppose this is proof that experience and ability do not always go hand in hand, but given one of the two, experience is more important.
After finishing in the top 10,000 and seeing my name in the paper, I've been satisfied with starting in the back again. It allows me to spend more time tossing tortillas like they were Frisbees. I can sit back and enjoy the music from the garage bands who set up mini-stages on balconies or driveways all along the route. It'’s also a more fun to pass people than to be passed while seeing more of the regular characters who participate in this public parade each year. There is a group that runs with a tiki hut made of bamboo and grass stocked with several forms of alcoholic refreshment. There is a caterpillar team of land sharks. They wear shark fins on their heads and you can watch those fins undulate above the sea of thousands of other racers. There is always at least one group of Elvis impersonators. There are lots of people wearing costumes that represent topical humor. One favorite a couple of years ago was a guy who was inside a huge cardboard box painted metallic grey. It had a fairly well made paper mache head resembling Arnold Schwarzenegger. Finally it had two extensible arms with foam rubber hands that could reach out and touch unsuspecting runners from behind, and was particularly fond of runners in Hooters uniforms (some of questionable gender). It was called "The Gropernator."” There usually are even runners with no costume at all, but at least 99% of them should keep covered for asthetic reasons.
This brings me to my oddest encounter with the "Rich and/or Famous"” or in this case, Infamous. After finishing the Bay to Breakers in 1993, I found myself standing right next to a man who looked vaguely familiar to me. He was taller than me but slouching a bit. He was wearing a light-blue button-down wool sweater because it was rather cold and foggy by the ocean. I thought it was still sort of an odd thing to wear while running even for this crazy race because it was so conventional. But I did not spend too much time trying to remember who he was. I was too busy catching my breath and checking out the other runners. Then I spotted a large group of teenage girls on the other side of the road. Half of them stood motionless looking in our direction with their eyes wide open and jaws dropped while the other half giggled uncontrollably and pointed us out to even more of their friends who would then have a shocked look on their face as well. At first, I guessed they recognized the "celebrity" standing next to me too, but then again, their eyes and fingers were not exactly directed at his face, but seemed to point further downward. Then they ran off and hid when they caught me looking back at them. So I suddenly had to make sure I didn't misjudge the finger pointing, so I checked if I was the one experiencing a very embarrassing wardrobe malfunction. When I looked down, I noticed out of the corner of my eye that the man standing next to me only wore a pair of leather sandals with his sweater.
I realized it was the Berkeley Naked Guy! He had made many headlines the year before with his "nude-in" protests at UC Berkeley, but the race was the first and last time I had met him in person. By that time, he was already yesterday's news -- until the day before this year'’s race, when I saw this tragic news story.
Monday, May 22, 2006
TV: Amazing Race 9 - Finale
Better late to post than never.
The hometown Hippies (though I guess only one member of the team is from San Francisco) win The Amazing Race. After racing around the world, it came down to remembering the flags of every country they had visited in the correct order faster than the Frat Boys. I probably would have gotten stuck on Russia as well, since I was used to seeing the Soviet Union flag. The geography puzzle at the end of the Family Edition was one of the few things I liked about that race, so it was nice to see a variation of that end this one.
The winning team showed up on the CBS Morning Show the next day to collect their check. BJ stayed in character by wearing royal garb now that he was rich. I wonder how hard it must be to win a million dollars but have to wait a few months before you could talk to anybody about it or even spend the money. Also on “live television” (tape delayed on the West coast), Ray proposed to Yolanda. Fortunately, she accepted because all the other teams appearing that morning showed up with cake and champagne. MoJo also says they will get married one day but will wait until they are older. So I suppose some people out there can still hope for a break up. Or MoJo may follow the path of Kurt Russell and Goldie Hawn and just remain partners forever.
The final leg of the race started in Thailand with an overt plug for a cell phone service company. It gave the racers another chance to work with animals. This season may have been a record for beasts, and I’ve lost track of them all (camels, crocodiles, spiders, monkeys, crickets, grasshoppers, and elephants, oh my).
After that, they were off to Tokyo (and the first city on the race that I’ve been to before). After a couple of weeks of having a good sense of direction, Ray and Yolanda were going to spend the rest of race pretty much lost. If there had been more flight choices at the airports, they could have easily fallen a day behind (which did happen a couple of times to third place teams in the past). I think I’ve been to that same intersection in Tokyo and I don’t know if the TV cameras captured just how mesmerizing all those signs can be. The closest was looking at the Frat Boys blank stare as they looked for a clue among those signs. Times Square in NYC still has a way to go to produce similar sensory overload. It was funny that the teams spotted the man who held the next clue wearing the yellow and orange scarf easier than the statue he was sitting next to. I wonder how long it takes to stop going to things of that color after the race ends.
The capsule hotel looked crazy and I’d only heard of them briefly before. Fortunately, the company I work for has not decided to cut costs that much yet, so I’ve gotten to stay at a decent hotel in Tokyo. I was amused that the Frats brought up the idea of time capsules. The teams remained pretty friendly at that rest stop despite the stakes.
I haven’t had the opportunity to visit Mt Fuji. I’ve only seen it from an airplane that practically flew right over the top of that volcano. It was always too smoggy and cloudy to see it from Tokyo itself, and I don’t know if Fuji would be as visible on a clear day as Mt. Rainier is around Seattle. Ray made an interesting observation that he had to talk fast for Japanese to understand him. It does seem kind of true. It was just tragic to see them lose their toll road ticket. Their cameraman (or the editors) did not reveal how it could have been misplaced. To add insult to injury, Ray got patted on the butt when he least expected it.
Were the Frat boys actually checking out schoolgirls at the Amusement park or just suffering from withdrawal pains? The rides looked kind of tame but it was funny to hear Tyler say that he might be regurgitating the crickets he ate earlier. Then the biggest upset of the race occurred when the Hippies beat the Frats in the paddleboats. Those things must have been rigged with speed restraints.
Team RaYo finished last and lost their possessions, but the Hippies did leave them some money. Then they got lucky and ran into some inebriated and generous businessmen at some random restaurant. They were at least 3 hours behind but caught up at the airport. The Frat boys copied a comedian whose name escaped me (and also a gag on Wayne’s World 2) by performing a decently funny fake “poorly dubbed movie” routine. The Hippies meanwhile lied like crazy about the Internet access at the hotel. Not sure how they got the hotel lobby employees to play along. It was almost as good as a Romber tactic but it would not pay off.
The teams were still pretty much tied arriving in Anchorage. Somehow RoYo scored some pretty heavy coats. Perhaps the producers bend the rules a little (or they just didn’t want any teams to die from frostbite). The Detour ended up not being much of a detour at all since the weather was too had for flying. RoYo showed their unintentionally psychic abilities again by describing how they just had to keep “grinding” to stay in the race not knowing that they would literally be doing that later. Then the Hippies temporarily started to “channel” Fran and Barry by walking right past a bunch of snowshoes several times.
Finally, the teams pretty much ended the race where they started with the aforementioned puzzle separating the men from the boys and favoring brain over brawn. The final funny moment happened during the victory speech. The Hippies mentioned the race could be like couples therapy, and suddenly they cut to a shot of Lake. Hilarious.
Hopefully the ratings, while lower, still encourage CBS to fund more races in the future.
The hometown Hippies (though I guess only one member of the team is from San Francisco) win The Amazing Race. After racing around the world, it came down to remembering the flags of every country they had visited in the correct order faster than the Frat Boys. I probably would have gotten stuck on Russia as well, since I was used to seeing the Soviet Union flag. The geography puzzle at the end of the Family Edition was one of the few things I liked about that race, so it was nice to see a variation of that end this one.
The winning team showed up on the CBS Morning Show the next day to collect their check. BJ stayed in character by wearing royal garb now that he was rich. I wonder how hard it must be to win a million dollars but have to wait a few months before you could talk to anybody about it or even spend the money. Also on “live television” (tape delayed on the West coast), Ray proposed to Yolanda. Fortunately, she accepted because all the other teams appearing that morning showed up with cake and champagne. MoJo also says they will get married one day but will wait until they are older. So I suppose some people out there can still hope for a break up. Or MoJo may follow the path of Kurt Russell and Goldie Hawn and just remain partners forever.
The final leg of the race started in Thailand with an overt plug for a cell phone service company. It gave the racers another chance to work with animals. This season may have been a record for beasts, and I’ve lost track of them all (camels, crocodiles, spiders, monkeys, crickets, grasshoppers, and elephants, oh my).
After that, they were off to Tokyo (and the first city on the race that I’ve been to before). After a couple of weeks of having a good sense of direction, Ray and Yolanda were going to spend the rest of race pretty much lost. If there had been more flight choices at the airports, they could have easily fallen a day behind (which did happen a couple of times to third place teams in the past). I think I’ve been to that same intersection in Tokyo and I don’t know if the TV cameras captured just how mesmerizing all those signs can be. The closest was looking at the Frat Boys blank stare as they looked for a clue among those signs. Times Square in NYC still has a way to go to produce similar sensory overload. It was funny that the teams spotted the man who held the next clue wearing the yellow and orange scarf easier than the statue he was sitting next to. I wonder how long it takes to stop going to things of that color after the race ends.
The capsule hotel looked crazy and I’d only heard of them briefly before. Fortunately, the company I work for has not decided to cut costs that much yet, so I’ve gotten to stay at a decent hotel in Tokyo. I was amused that the Frats brought up the idea of time capsules. The teams remained pretty friendly at that rest stop despite the stakes.
I haven’t had the opportunity to visit Mt Fuji. I’ve only seen it from an airplane that practically flew right over the top of that volcano. It was always too smoggy and cloudy to see it from Tokyo itself, and I don’t know if Fuji would be as visible on a clear day as Mt. Rainier is around Seattle. Ray made an interesting observation that he had to talk fast for Japanese to understand him. It does seem kind of true. It was just tragic to see them lose their toll road ticket. Their cameraman (or the editors) did not reveal how it could have been misplaced. To add insult to injury, Ray got patted on the butt when he least expected it.
Were the Frat boys actually checking out schoolgirls at the Amusement park or just suffering from withdrawal pains? The rides looked kind of tame but it was funny to hear Tyler say that he might be regurgitating the crickets he ate earlier. Then the biggest upset of the race occurred when the Hippies beat the Frats in the paddleboats. Those things must have been rigged with speed restraints.
Team RaYo finished last and lost their possessions, but the Hippies did leave them some money. Then they got lucky and ran into some inebriated and generous businessmen at some random restaurant. They were at least 3 hours behind but caught up at the airport. The Frat boys copied a comedian whose name escaped me (and also a gag on Wayne’s World 2) by performing a decently funny fake “poorly dubbed movie” routine. The Hippies meanwhile lied like crazy about the Internet access at the hotel. Not sure how they got the hotel lobby employees to play along. It was almost as good as a Romber tactic but it would not pay off.
The teams were still pretty much tied arriving in Anchorage. Somehow RoYo scored some pretty heavy coats. Perhaps the producers bend the rules a little (or they just didn’t want any teams to die from frostbite). The Detour ended up not being much of a detour at all since the weather was too had for flying. RoYo showed their unintentionally psychic abilities again by describing how they just had to keep “grinding” to stay in the race not knowing that they would literally be doing that later. Then the Hippies temporarily started to “channel” Fran and Barry by walking right past a bunch of snowshoes several times.
Finally, the teams pretty much ended the race where they started with the aforementioned puzzle separating the men from the boys and favoring brain over brawn. The final funny moment happened during the victory speech. The Hippies mentioned the race could be like couples therapy, and suddenly they cut to a shot of Lake. Hilarious.
Hopefully the ratings, while lower, still encourage CBS to fund more races in the future.
Monday, May 15, 2006
TV: Amazing Race 9 - Ep 11
Apologies for being very late in posting about the show this week. I was staying at a hotel with pretty poor Internet access (though that may have been true across the whole island I was on) and even poorer TV reception. I probably could have scheduled things better to watch the show on time, but I guess I needed a break from the hectic world by going low-tech and sauntering at a 28.8 kbaud pace.
This week's show began with a repeat of the exciting 3-way finish from last week with several shots of Monica giving the Hippies the evil eye accompanied by a wicked nose scrunch. Once again the Hippies relied on the other teams to bail them out, though they also were resourceful in asking the hotel if they had anything in "lost and found" to give away. It was funny to see BJ actually wear Yolanda's spandex pants and Eric lie about donating the sandals. MoJo incurred the Bad Karma this week by holding a grudge much too long.
Australia must have a bustling night life. It was probably 3am when the Hippies went out begging for money and had no problems finding people. "Last Call" in SF is 2am, effectively shutting down the partying relatively early in this little corner of the planet.
Persistence is the lesson for this week. The Hippies used it to grab seats that opened up on a previously full flight that was scheduled to land earlier than the flight taken by the other teams. That did not quite work out, but they were willing to check out ALL the ticket counters at the bus terminal and still catch up with the other teams. This may be where MoJo lost the race. Despite Joseph's gut warning him there might be shady business going on, they decided to listen to people who said that the bus to Lopburi would not leave until the morning. [I suspect one bus company did not want to lose more business to the other, so they may have lied to Team MoJo. I wonder how much business the company with the blue signs will lose to the one with the red signs because of tourists who have seen this episode.]
Yolanda displayed her "ESPN" abilities by divining that a Fast Forward challenge with a clue of "an after school favorite" would involve cricket. Of course she was thinking of the sport rather than eating a bowl of stir-fried insects. At first I thought BJ would have a harder time eating that stuff but it was Tyler who ended up vomiting more frequently. BJ got through things by comparing the ordeal to a Turkish prison and lamenting that he thought he had ordered Pad Thai (one of my favorite Thai dishes). They both persisted at that task and won the leg of the race. I'd never be able to each that much any food in one sitting.
Back at the road block, the team had fun with monkeys. It's unfortunate the losing contestants do not appear on David Letterman's show. Dave's assistant, Stephanie, used to always ask the Survivor losers, "Did you get to see or touch any monkeys?" The Frat Boys got to do both while subtly advertising a snack food in the process. I guess Eric found a good reason to wear a T-shirt with a tuxedo design while serving food to the cute but voracious monkeys. Then kudos to the editing team for piecing together a funny shot of Monica cursing at the monkeys, then stuffing huge handful of trail mix into her mouth.
MoJo once again had a chance to stay alive in the race but had trouble finding the next clue while Ray-Yo continued to improve their sense of direction and find the clue earlier. From watching the post-game interviews it sounds like MoJo completed the physical task in less time than it took the other teams to apply slivers of gold leaf to a Buddha statue. They finished about 15 minutes behind Ray-Yo but started their task later and lost another 20 minutes locating a taxi.
- The flight from Darwin to Bangkok involved going south to go north. I hate those kind of flights.
- The finish was not as exciting as the two weeks but that would have been asking too much.
- MoJo never won a leg or a prize the whole race, but it sounds like they will be happy to just have each other (no mushy tears from me though).
- Next week, Mt Fuji, and the coolest shots I've seen of Tokyo since Lost in Translation.
- For once, I have no idea who will win this thing, but I suspect I'd be part of a majority if I bet on the Hippies. The previews show a final task involving some physical work in the ice and snow, and that might favor the Frat Boys.
This week's show began with a repeat of the exciting 3-way finish from last week with several shots of Monica giving the Hippies the evil eye accompanied by a wicked nose scrunch. Once again the Hippies relied on the other teams to bail them out, though they also were resourceful in asking the hotel if they had anything in "lost and found" to give away. It was funny to see BJ actually wear Yolanda's spandex pants and Eric lie about donating the sandals. MoJo incurred the Bad Karma this week by holding a grudge much too long.
Australia must have a bustling night life. It was probably 3am when the Hippies went out begging for money and had no problems finding people. "Last Call" in SF is 2am, effectively shutting down the partying relatively early in this little corner of the planet.
Persistence is the lesson for this week. The Hippies used it to grab seats that opened up on a previously full flight that was scheduled to land earlier than the flight taken by the other teams. That did not quite work out, but they were willing to check out ALL the ticket counters at the bus terminal and still catch up with the other teams. This may be where MoJo lost the race. Despite Joseph's gut warning him there might be shady business going on, they decided to listen to people who said that the bus to Lopburi would not leave until the morning. [I suspect one bus company did not want to lose more business to the other, so they may have lied to Team MoJo. I wonder how much business the company with the blue signs will lose to the one with the red signs because of tourists who have seen this episode.]
Yolanda displayed her "ESPN" abilities by divining that a Fast Forward challenge with a clue of "an after school favorite" would involve cricket. Of course she was thinking of the sport rather than eating a bowl of stir-fried insects. At first I thought BJ would have a harder time eating that stuff but it was Tyler who ended up vomiting more frequently. BJ got through things by comparing the ordeal to a Turkish prison and lamenting that he thought he had ordered Pad Thai (one of my favorite Thai dishes). They both persisted at that task and won the leg of the race. I'd never be able to each that much any food in one sitting.
Back at the road block, the team had fun with monkeys. It's unfortunate the losing contestants do not appear on David Letterman's show. Dave's assistant, Stephanie, used to always ask the Survivor losers, "Did you get to see or touch any monkeys?" The Frat Boys got to do both while subtly advertising a snack food in the process. I guess Eric found a good reason to wear a T-shirt with a tuxedo design while serving food to the cute but voracious monkeys. Then kudos to the editing team for piecing together a funny shot of Monica cursing at the monkeys, then stuffing huge handful of trail mix into her mouth.
MoJo once again had a chance to stay alive in the race but had trouble finding the next clue while Ray-Yo continued to improve their sense of direction and find the clue earlier. From watching the post-game interviews it sounds like MoJo completed the physical task in less time than it took the other teams to apply slivers of gold leaf to a Buddha statue. They finished about 15 minutes behind Ray-Yo but started their task later and lost another 20 minutes locating a taxi.
- The flight from Darwin to Bangkok involved going south to go north. I hate those kind of flights.
- The finish was not as exciting as the two weeks but that would have been asking too much.
- MoJo never won a leg or a prize the whole race, but it sounds like they will be happy to just have each other (no mushy tears from me though).
- Next week, Mt Fuji, and the coolest shots I've seen of Tokyo since Lost in Translation.
- For once, I have no idea who will win this thing, but I suspect I'd be part of a majority if I bet on the Hippies. The previews show a final task involving some physical work in the ice and snow, and that might favor the Frat Boys.
Monday, May 08, 2006
TMI: Too Much Television
For a blog that is supposed to be filled with random thoughts, I guess it should be unusual to have so many posts about TV [though there's nothing about random number generation that prevents this from happening either]. The topic of how much television I watch has even been raised quite often this week as I've interacted with separate circles of friends (childhood, college, work, ex-coworkers) and family who've never had much chance to intermingle. [I guess that's George Costanza's colliding worlds theory raised to a new level -- oops another TV reference.]
The topic may not be a complete coincidence as I'm probably the one who either brings up a TV show or is the first to answer a question about what's going on with the TV shows heading into their season finales this May (plus a couple of people from each circle are now aware of my blog).
So here's my current DVR recording schedule (actual viewing time varies):
Sunday: The Simpsons, The Sopranos, desperate Housewives, Grey's Anatomy
Monday: Prison Break, 24
Tuesday: House
Wednesday: Amazing Race, Alias, Lost
Thursday: The OC, CSI (though I've somehow forgotten to record the last few episodes)
Friday: nothing (until Sci-Fi Fridays resumes with new episodes)
Saturday: Saturday Night Live
But that's just the Must-See List...
I'll also occasionally stop flipping channels for shows like The Office, My Name is Earl, Scrubs, Las Vegas, The Apprentice, The 70's Show, Cops!, Real Time with Bill Maher, Curb Your Enthusiasm, The Daily Show, The Colbert Report, South Park, Love Monkey (unwisely cancelled by CBS, but VH1 is airing the remaining episodes), Ghost Whisperer, Numb3rs, Without a Trace, CSI: Miami, CSI: NY, The Unit, Nova, Austin City Limits, Project Runway, CNBC, Headline News, Fox News, MSNBC, E!, ESPN, Fox Sports Net, movies that I didn't watch in theaters, and syndicated reruns of very old shows that I may have missed for some reason or other. However, the general role of this "B-list" is to break the silence of my apartment (or hotel room) while I do other things like read magazines, surf the Internet, or catch up on e-mail / junk mail / bills. [I stopped watching The Shield a few years ago because I couldn't do 2-3 other things at once while that was on.]
When I see/hear the late night info-mercials about how to get rich without spending your own money, the latest workout equipment, natural cures for maladies I've never heard of before, or "Girls Gone Wild" videos, then I know I've been awake too long.
This Wednesday made me realize that I have to make a New Year's Resolution to add no new shows from now on (and let attrition take care of the existing list). Alias, The Amazing Race, and a special episode of House were all airing at the same time. My DVR allowed me to record two of those shows, and I had to do some intricate rewiring to attach the VCR to a separate cable line and record the third show blindly. Fortunately a SF Giants vs. Brewers game ended quickly or I would have gone more insane than I already am.
At least I should be able to cease obsessing over TV once summer rolls around provided none of these series end with a "Who Shot J.R.?" cliffhanger.
The topic may not be a complete coincidence as I'm probably the one who either brings up a TV show or is the first to answer a question about what's going on with the TV shows heading into their season finales this May (plus a couple of people from each circle are now aware of my blog).
So here's my current DVR recording schedule (actual viewing time varies):
Sunday: The Simpsons, The Sopranos, desperate Housewives, Grey's Anatomy
Monday: Prison Break, 24
Tuesday: House
Wednesday: Amazing Race, Alias, Lost
Thursday: The OC, CSI (though I've somehow forgotten to record the last few episodes)
Friday: nothing (until Sci-Fi Fridays resumes with new episodes)
Saturday: Saturday Night Live
But that's just the Must-See List...
I'll also occasionally stop flipping channels for shows like The Office, My Name is Earl, Scrubs, Las Vegas, The Apprentice, The 70's Show, Cops!, Real Time with Bill Maher, Curb Your Enthusiasm, The Daily Show, The Colbert Report, South Park, Love Monkey (unwisely cancelled by CBS, but VH1 is airing the remaining episodes), Ghost Whisperer, Numb3rs, Without a Trace, CSI: Miami, CSI: NY, The Unit, Nova, Austin City Limits, Project Runway, CNBC, Headline News, Fox News, MSNBC, E!, ESPN, Fox Sports Net, movies that I didn't watch in theaters, and syndicated reruns of very old shows that I may have missed for some reason or other. However, the general role of this "B-list" is to break the silence of my apartment (or hotel room) while I do other things like read magazines, surf the Internet, or catch up on e-mail / junk mail / bills. [I stopped watching The Shield a few years ago because I couldn't do 2-3 other things at once while that was on.]
When I see/hear the late night info-mercials about how to get rich without spending your own money, the latest workout equipment, natural cures for maladies I've never heard of before, or "Girls Gone Wild" videos, then I know I've been awake too long.
This Wednesday made me realize that I have to make a New Year's Resolution to add no new shows from now on (and let attrition take care of the existing list). Alias, The Amazing Race, and a special episode of House were all airing at the same time. My DVR allowed me to record two of those shows, and I had to do some intricate rewiring to attach the VCR to a separate cable line and record the third show blindly. Fortunately a SF Giants vs. Brewers game ended quickly or I would have gone more insane than I already am.
At least I should be able to cease obsessing over TV once summer rolls around provided none of these series end with a "Who Shot J.R.?" cliffhanger.
Thursday, May 04, 2006
TV: Amazing Race 9 - Ep 10
This was the most intense non-elimination leg ... ever. (Minus the first season of this show, which I completely missed) I don't recall so many teams finishing so close together in such a late leg. Wow! I'll never complain about "bunching" again if it results in these types of endings more frequently. It was fun to watch the tensions mount as the teams begin to feel they've got a chance for the million-dollar prize. I found it hard to even blink (even though I could always hit rewind on my DVR) because even some tiny details were having major implications in the race, though I can't recall many of them anymore.
- What was a random guy doing just hanging out around the Pitstop at midnight? I wonder how long the racers would have had to stand around for a taxi otherwise.
- I guess $70 gets you around quite a bit in Australia. Granted, I guess they only had to spend money on a couple of taxi rides, maps / guides, and maybe a random meal here and there.
- I guess that part of the country is fairly sparse population-wise. The Frat boys did not seem to have any locals to hit on, so they had to resort to the remaining females in the race. So Eric flirted with Monica (while hoping Joseph would become a crocodile's dinner), and Jeremy complimented Yolanda (perhaps while hoping Ray's parachute would fail).
- Did Jeremy just pull the name Doug Brubaker out of thin air? The movie "Brubaker" seems before his time. It was a classic Romber move to cancel the other team's taxis and frame Mojo in the process, but even they felt they got hit by bad karma as a result (or the Amazing race editors caught that theme in my last couple of blog entries..)
- What was up with the airline ticket guy's expression when Monica offered a kiss in exchange for him withholding info from the other teams? I guess it was sort of a, "Sorry, you're kind of cute, but you're definitely not 'worth losing my job over' cute." Meanwhile Yolanda (under the impression that Mojo had canceled the taxis) dissed Monica by calling her a plastic Barbie doll that the crocodiles would choke on if they tried to eat her. Ouch.
- Hippie jokes, "Goodbye wallets, er.., crocodiles" and the stuff about the termites and the peg leg kind of fell flat for me, but maybe the pressure and exhaustion is ruining their sense of humor.
- Once again Mojo comes in second place. This time while racing to the Yield against the Hippies (they'd finally get revenge later). My advice to Joseph -- learn how to empathize! Of course, this is coming from someone's whose total knowledge of relationships came from reading "Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus"
- Fortunately, Mojo overcame the Yield by correctly assessing which Detour could be done faster. The Frat Boys and Hippies strangely thought they could hike / wade a mile down a stream faster than a car could drive six miles. The also seemed less intimidated with confronting poisonous spiders and plants [seems like just about everything in Australia can be fatal] than learning to play an instrument. Mojo was also wise to ask for directions and grab a map at a local info center.
- Yolanda has a pleasant laugh. And this is coming from a guy who has a whole repertoire of annoying laughs and giggles.
- I was surprised the Frats didn't try to give the Hippies wrong directions to the Pitstop, but may be they decided it wasn't worth risking more bad karma, and they probably would have had the Hippies tailgating them anyway.
- Great camera and multi-angle slo-mo replay work at the Pitstop. BJ reminded me of a recent Tour de France bike rider that inexplicably went off the road and down a mountain side (fortunately neither were hurt). Maybe the adrenaline rush during the sky dive was still clouding his judgment. So he finally got to do a fun Roadblock, but I wonder how he'll get around now that I imagine his shoes have been taken away.
- What was a random guy doing just hanging out around the Pitstop at midnight? I wonder how long the racers would have had to stand around for a taxi otherwise.
- I guess $70 gets you around quite a bit in Australia. Granted, I guess they only had to spend money on a couple of taxi rides, maps / guides, and maybe a random meal here and there.
- I guess that part of the country is fairly sparse population-wise. The Frat boys did not seem to have any locals to hit on, so they had to resort to the remaining females in the race. So Eric flirted with Monica (while hoping Joseph would become a crocodile's dinner), and Jeremy complimented Yolanda (perhaps while hoping Ray's parachute would fail).
- Did Jeremy just pull the name Doug Brubaker out of thin air? The movie "Brubaker" seems before his time. It was a classic Romber move to cancel the other team's taxis and frame Mojo in the process, but even they felt they got hit by bad karma as a result (or the Amazing race editors caught that theme in my last couple of blog entries..)
- What was up with the airline ticket guy's expression when Monica offered a kiss in exchange for him withholding info from the other teams? I guess it was sort of a, "Sorry, you're kind of cute, but you're definitely not 'worth losing my job over' cute." Meanwhile Yolanda (under the impression that Mojo had canceled the taxis) dissed Monica by calling her a plastic Barbie doll that the crocodiles would choke on if they tried to eat her. Ouch.
- Hippie jokes, "Goodbye wallets, er.., crocodiles" and the stuff about the termites and the peg leg kind of fell flat for me, but maybe the pressure and exhaustion is ruining their sense of humor.
- Once again Mojo comes in second place. This time while racing to the Yield against the Hippies (they'd finally get revenge later). My advice to Joseph -- learn how to empathize! Of course, this is coming from someone's whose total knowledge of relationships came from reading "Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus"
- Fortunately, Mojo overcame the Yield by correctly assessing which Detour could be done faster. The Frat Boys and Hippies strangely thought they could hike / wade a mile down a stream faster than a car could drive six miles. The also seemed less intimidated with confronting poisonous spiders and plants [seems like just about everything in Australia can be fatal] than learning to play an instrument. Mojo was also wise to ask for directions and grab a map at a local info center.
- Yolanda has a pleasant laugh. And this is coming from a guy who has a whole repertoire of annoying laughs and giggles.
- I was surprised the Frats didn't try to give the Hippies wrong directions to the Pitstop, but may be they decided it wasn't worth risking more bad karma, and they probably would have had the Hippies tailgating them anyway.
- Great camera and multi-angle slo-mo replay work at the Pitstop. BJ reminded me of a recent Tour de France bike rider that inexplicably went off the road and down a mountain side (fortunately neither were hurt). Maybe the adrenaline rush during the sky dive was still clouding his judgment. So he finally got to do a fun Roadblock, but I wonder how he'll get around now that I imagine his shoes have been taken away.
Friday, April 28, 2006
TV: Amazing Race 9 - Ep 9
And then there were four.
The oldsters did a great job of staying in the race for a long time, but elimination always seemed inevitable. And I suspect that it was not the strenuous challenges this week that did them in. I think Ray and Yolanda even admitted Fran and Barry had "dusted them" on the bike ride to a lighthouse. I think their downfall was caused by taking too long to find the final clue in the caves. Having a taxi driver flake out on them didn't help either. At least they won the best prize given out to the winners so far this season with a trip to Rome.
There are usually 12-hour breaks at each Pit Stop, but it seemed like the teams were arriving later and later at night last week but leaving in the late afternoon this week (almost a 24-hour break). BJ was burning in the midday sun and the drive to Jabreen Castle was just 150 miles. Maybe the speed limit was low and they ended up eating the underground stove cooked dinner on the road. Unfortunately I deleted the episodes before confirming any of the times.
I would not have left any money for the Hippies this late in the race. It certainly didn't bring any good karma as the teams finished in order of stinginess with the Frat boys leaving an IOU of $100 to be paid after the race (which would be small change if they end up winning this thing). The Hippies gave a ride to a hitchhiking Bedouin who paid them back in kind. Then they had no problems getting money from plane passengers (who could afford a flight from Oman to Perth) and ended up a few hundred dollars ahead. I wonder how long the flight was held up so those two guys could get on board. It looked like a pretty empty flight.
It will be interesting to see who can get to the next Yield on this Race first as the Hippies and Mojo definitely have a rivalry going. Not sure how the Hippies can threaten to use the Yield if they stay in third place.
The long trips left the teams pretty bunched up all the way to Rottnest Island. I guess Perth / Fremantle is the hometown of one of at least one of my regular readers. I've only had the pleasure of hanging out in Melbourne, but I'll revisit Australia someday.
The race borrowed a page from my other favorite show, Prison Break, this week. It may work out for Mojo to have lost time on the bike ride and detour so that the Frat Boys arrived at the prison an hour earlier. All the effort the Frat boys put out trying to find things inside the prison and running to the pit stop instead of taking a taxi could leave them a little worn down the rest of the way. Jeremy had no search algorithm at all.
Mojo keeps edging closer and closer to first, but hopefully they will not get too disheartened by that and realize the only leg of the race that really matters is the last one. The Frat boys still look like the favorites in this thing.
Best scene this week: Fran and Barry entering a backpackers' hotel room called "The Pleasure Dome" and commenting about their sex life (or recent lack thereof).
Hopefully the excitement and emotional fireworks will continue to escalate next week.
The oldsters did a great job of staying in the race for a long time, but elimination always seemed inevitable. And I suspect that it was not the strenuous challenges this week that did them in. I think Ray and Yolanda even admitted Fran and Barry had "dusted them" on the bike ride to a lighthouse. I think their downfall was caused by taking too long to find the final clue in the caves. Having a taxi driver flake out on them didn't help either. At least they won the best prize given out to the winners so far this season with a trip to Rome.
There are usually 12-hour breaks at each Pit Stop, but it seemed like the teams were arriving later and later at night last week but leaving in the late afternoon this week (almost a 24-hour break). BJ was burning in the midday sun and the drive to Jabreen Castle was just 150 miles. Maybe the speed limit was low and they ended up eating the underground stove cooked dinner on the road. Unfortunately I deleted the episodes before confirming any of the times.
I would not have left any money for the Hippies this late in the race. It certainly didn't bring any good karma as the teams finished in order of stinginess with the Frat boys leaving an IOU of $100 to be paid after the race (which would be small change if they end up winning this thing). The Hippies gave a ride to a hitchhiking Bedouin who paid them back in kind. Then they had no problems getting money from plane passengers (who could afford a flight from Oman to Perth) and ended up a few hundred dollars ahead. I wonder how long the flight was held up so those two guys could get on board. It looked like a pretty empty flight.
It will be interesting to see who can get to the next Yield on this Race first as the Hippies and Mojo definitely have a rivalry going. Not sure how the Hippies can threaten to use the Yield if they stay in third place.
The long trips left the teams pretty bunched up all the way to Rottnest Island. I guess Perth / Fremantle is the hometown of one of at least one of my regular readers. I've only had the pleasure of hanging out in Melbourne, but I'll revisit Australia someday.
The race borrowed a page from my other favorite show, Prison Break, this week. It may work out for Mojo to have lost time on the bike ride and detour so that the Frat Boys arrived at the prison an hour earlier. All the effort the Frat boys put out trying to find things inside the prison and running to the pit stop instead of taking a taxi could leave them a little worn down the rest of the way. Jeremy had no search algorithm at all.
Mojo keeps edging closer and closer to first, but hopefully they will not get too disheartened by that and realize the only leg of the race that really matters is the last one. The Frat boys still look like the favorites in this thing.
Best scene this week: Fran and Barry entering a backpackers' hotel room called "The Pleasure Dome" and commenting about their sex life (or recent lack thereof).
Hopefully the excitement and emotional fireworks will continue to escalate next week.
Saturday, April 22, 2006
TV: Amazing Race 9 - Ep 8
The desert heat must have affected the Race contestants this week. They all acted out of character and finished in almost reverse order. The usually happy Ray and Yolanda started to show strain in their relationship, the Oldies had no problems seeing clue boxes, and the Frat Boys displayed hints of self-doubt.
BJ did a dead-on impression of Lake and then mocked the behavior of the Nerds and the Pinks. It was funny, but little did he know this would earn some bad karma resulting in spending over an hour digging under a hot sun for a buried supper while all the other teams passed his team.
The Hippies only luck was that it was a non-elimination leg which felt overdue. Even though they will be left with no money, they may not have too much trouble getting cash from people living in a country that Monica described as "Crazy Rich" and where even a McDonald's looks like a temple.
Monica is a quote machine (either that or the poor editors may have to mine hours of her chatter for the few diamonds in the rough). Last week it was Greece where "thinking began," and this week she commented on the opulence of Oman and little man that she wanted to take home in her pocket. Her partner Joseph came in second by calling Jabreen Castle, Jamboree Castle. Then Ray came third with his comment about the Arabic language being all squiggly.
Hopefully no camels were harmed in the making of this episode. It was kind of cute seeing them get loaded into the bedded bed of a pickup truck and I chuckled at the camels heckling the racers at the Detour.
Driving through the water looked fun, but the one time I drove my car through a relatively deep puddle, it ended up with a busted water pump later that day. I know nothing about cars, so I'm unsure if the puddle was a cause or mere coincidence. I don't remember if the cars in the show had snorkels or anything.
I thought my quote for last week's Photo Finish was funnier than someone else's quote that mentioned plastic surgery. I couldn't think of anything "clean" to submit for this week's photo.
Next week we get rowing through dark, narrow, underground tunnels in Australia. That would have been a tough challenge for me. One of my recurring nightmares involves getting stuck in a cave / tunnel / vent.
BJ did a dead-on impression of Lake and then mocked the behavior of the Nerds and the Pinks. It was funny, but little did he know this would earn some bad karma resulting in spending over an hour digging under a hot sun for a buried supper while all the other teams passed his team.
The Hippies only luck was that it was a non-elimination leg which felt overdue. Even though they will be left with no money, they may not have too much trouble getting cash from people living in a country that Monica described as "Crazy Rich" and where even a McDonald's looks like a temple.
Monica is a quote machine (either that or the poor editors may have to mine hours of her chatter for the few diamonds in the rough). Last week it was Greece where "thinking began," and this week she commented on the opulence of Oman and little man that she wanted to take home in her pocket. Her partner Joseph came in second by calling Jabreen Castle, Jamboree Castle. Then Ray came third with his comment about the Arabic language being all squiggly.
Hopefully no camels were harmed in the making of this episode. It was kind of cute seeing them get loaded into the bedded bed of a pickup truck and I chuckled at the camels heckling the racers at the Detour.
Driving through the water looked fun, but the one time I drove my car through a relatively deep puddle, it ended up with a busted water pump later that day. I know nothing about cars, so I'm unsure if the puddle was a cause or mere coincidence. I don't remember if the cars in the show had snorkels or anything.
I thought my quote for last week's Photo Finish was funnier than someone else's quote that mentioned plastic surgery. I couldn't think of anything "clean" to submit for this week's photo.
Next week we get rowing through dark, narrow, underground tunnels in Australia. That would have been a tough challenge for me. One of my recurring nightmares involves getting stuck in a cave / tunnel / vent.
Wednesday, April 19, 2006
Web: Belated Happy Easter
Work and other commitments have kept me busy this week. Posted my Friday movie reviews on Monday and may not get around to my Amazing Race reviews until Saturday. So I'll continue the trend of being 3 days late by pointing you to a (cartoonishly violent but) funny video.
Also, here's a photo of two recently hatched Canada gosling and parents lounging at the Oracle pond.
Also, here's a photo of two recently hatched Canada gosling and parents lounging at the Oracle pond.
Monday, April 17, 2006
Movies: Weekly Recaps
Over the years, it's almost become a ritual for me to visit the movie theater with some friends on a Friday or Saturday night (even though I already subscribe to just about every cable channel available). Last year was an odd exception as I knew it might be hard to enjoy regular movies after watching the Lord of the Rings. Time to play some catch up (though I'll forego the hyperlinks and just recommend going to imdb directly).
King Kong - It would be unfair to expect Peter Jackson to top Lord of the Rings, so I went to the theater trying to keep my expectations low. In a way, Jackson squeezed a trilogy into a single movie. One part portrait of depression era New York City, another part rollicking Jurassic Park sequel, and finale a touching love story of an odd sort. So it was 3 movies for the price of one. Except for a few nitpicks and some weak special effects, it was quite enjoyable. It's possible that some weaknesses were left as is so that the director could keep his childhood visions and passions of how he'd remake this movie intact. His love for this subject did come through the screen for me, plus it was the best excuse to stare at Naomi Watt's angelic face for 3 hours. Evan Parke's performance as Hayes also stood out. B+
Good Night and Good Luck - The events portrayed in the movie happened long before I was born, but I ended up reading much about this era as a side effect of doing research on President Nixon for an elementary school history assignment. David Strathairn seemed to be channeling Edward R Murrow. Other than reminding viewers that those in power could throw around "labels" to distort truth and create an atmosphere in fear, I wasn't sure this movie would be Oscar nominated in most years. However, it was still fascinating to watch. B
Match Point - I've always been a big fan of Woody Allen's earlier movies. His more recent movies have been good at best. This movie falls into the same category as Mystic River for me. Great acting and interesting characters (though nobody I'd actually cheer for) undone by a dull, predictable story . I haven't had a chance to ask any Brits about how accurate some of the portrayals are in this film. C+
Munich - This may be the best movie I saw which was nominated for 2005 (somehow I missed Crash and Brokeback Mountain). I liked Spielberg's Catch Me If You Can a little bit more, but in general, it's difficult to rank all the classic films that have been directed by this one person. From AI onwards, it appears Steven Spielberg has permanently inherited a touch of darkness from Stanley Kubrick (who seems to have done a number on Tom Cruise as well since Eyes Wide Shut). But I won't complain much about that. I was still a very young child when the tragedies of the 1972 Olympics occurred, but many of my memories and feelings of confusion resurfaced as the ABC Sports coverage was shown. The movie was fascinating to watch from beginning to end with some surprising "in your face" violence that seems unavoidable given the subject matter. It raised more questions than it answered about terrorism and vengeance, but again it felt like everything fit and fell into place. I know I'm enjoying a movie when my brain does not struggle to rewrite things on the screen. A
Inside Man - While this movie portrays a very interesting bank heist (somehow the Oceans Eleven remake spawned several copycats recently), I suspect New Yorkers would have the most appreciation of the other things going on inside this movie. I've seen Denzel Washington do better work in other movies but he's still better than most actors even when he's not in his top game (though it may be that he was straddled with a detective character that looked like ones I've seen before like Woody Harrelson's character in Before the Sunset). Chiwetel Ejiofor who did a great job in Serenity shines again as Denzel's partner. Jodie Foster moves around and cat complete with a Cheshire smile, so befitting of her character - amazing. A-
Thank You for Smoking - One commercial claimed this movie was laugh out loud funny and compared it to the Wedding Crashers. I sort of beg to differ but only so people don't watch this with the wrong expectations. I only laughed out loud a couple of times but I think I had a grin or smirk on my face for most of the movie. It was a great tongue in cheek exaggerated commentary on attempts to use "spin" vs. facts to try to influence public opinion. B
V for Vendetta (redux) - I decided to give this movie a rare second viewing last Friday because I had a feeling there was more to the movie than met the eye. This time I sat in a regular theater (not IMAX) and sat further back. Tom Kyte beat me to the punch in commenting on the considerable symbolism and recurring themes in this movie. I also caught some things I missed the first time around (which again I can't say much about without giving away plot) which better plugged some of the holes that I thought were there before. I also forgot to mention Hugo Weaving's achievement of being able to display emotion despite being hidden behind a mask. He couldn't even leverage his lips like Peter Weller in Robocop or Michael Keaton in Batman. All Hugo Weaving could do was tilt his head or position his shoulders and basically let his voice do most of the work.
The Wachowski brothers adapted this screenplay before they wrote the Matrix so it was also fun to analyze how they influenced each other. One of the scenes near the end reminded me of one of Clint Eastwood's early westerns, but its title still escapes my memory. B
Most of the movies I've watched recently have had some common undercurrents. I guess it's true that popular movies and books sometimes say as much or more about the time they were created as the subjects that they were supposed to be about.
King Kong - It would be unfair to expect Peter Jackson to top Lord of the Rings, so I went to the theater trying to keep my expectations low. In a way, Jackson squeezed a trilogy into a single movie. One part portrait of depression era New York City, another part rollicking Jurassic Park sequel, and finale a touching love story of an odd sort. So it was 3 movies for the price of one. Except for a few nitpicks and some weak special effects, it was quite enjoyable. It's possible that some weaknesses were left as is so that the director could keep his childhood visions and passions of how he'd remake this movie intact. His love for this subject did come through the screen for me, plus it was the best excuse to stare at Naomi Watt's angelic face for 3 hours. Evan Parke's performance as Hayes also stood out. B+
Good Night and Good Luck - The events portrayed in the movie happened long before I was born, but I ended up reading much about this era as a side effect of doing research on President Nixon for an elementary school history assignment. David Strathairn seemed to be channeling Edward R Murrow. Other than reminding viewers that those in power could throw around "labels" to distort truth and create an atmosphere in fear, I wasn't sure this movie would be Oscar nominated in most years. However, it was still fascinating to watch. B
Match Point - I've always been a big fan of Woody Allen's earlier movies. His more recent movies have been good at best. This movie falls into the same category as Mystic River for me. Great acting and interesting characters (though nobody I'd actually cheer for) undone by a dull, predictable story . I haven't had a chance to ask any Brits about how accurate some of the portrayals are in this film. C+
Munich - This may be the best movie I saw which was nominated for 2005 (somehow I missed Crash and Brokeback Mountain). I liked Spielberg's Catch Me If You Can a little bit more, but in general, it's difficult to rank all the classic films that have been directed by this one person. From AI onwards, it appears Steven Spielberg has permanently inherited a touch of darkness from Stanley Kubrick (who seems to have done a number on Tom Cruise as well since Eyes Wide Shut). But I won't complain much about that. I was still a very young child when the tragedies of the 1972 Olympics occurred, but many of my memories and feelings of confusion resurfaced as the ABC Sports coverage was shown. The movie was fascinating to watch from beginning to end with some surprising "in your face" violence that seems unavoidable given the subject matter. It raised more questions than it answered about terrorism and vengeance, but again it felt like everything fit and fell into place. I know I'm enjoying a movie when my brain does not struggle to rewrite things on the screen. A
Inside Man - While this movie portrays a very interesting bank heist (somehow the Oceans Eleven remake spawned several copycats recently), I suspect New Yorkers would have the most appreciation of the other things going on inside this movie. I've seen Denzel Washington do better work in other movies but he's still better than most actors even when he's not in his top game (though it may be that he was straddled with a detective character that looked like ones I've seen before like Woody Harrelson's character in Before the Sunset). Chiwetel Ejiofor who did a great job in Serenity shines again as Denzel's partner. Jodie Foster moves around and cat complete with a Cheshire smile, so befitting of her character - amazing. A-
Thank You for Smoking - One commercial claimed this movie was laugh out loud funny and compared it to the Wedding Crashers. I sort of beg to differ but only so people don't watch this with the wrong expectations. I only laughed out loud a couple of times but I think I had a grin or smirk on my face for most of the movie. It was a great tongue in cheek exaggerated commentary on attempts to use "spin" vs. facts to try to influence public opinion. B
V for Vendetta (redux) - I decided to give this movie a rare second viewing last Friday because I had a feeling there was more to the movie than met the eye. This time I sat in a regular theater (not IMAX) and sat further back. Tom Kyte beat me to the punch in commenting on the considerable symbolism and recurring themes in this movie. I also caught some things I missed the first time around (which again I can't say much about without giving away plot) which better plugged some of the holes that I thought were there before. I also forgot to mention Hugo Weaving's achievement of being able to display emotion despite being hidden behind a mask. He couldn't even leverage his lips like Peter Weller in Robocop or Michael Keaton in Batman. All Hugo Weaving could do was tilt his head or position his shoulders and basically let his voice do most of the work.
The Wachowski brothers adapted this screenplay before they wrote the Matrix so it was also fun to analyze how they influenced each other. One of the scenes near the end reminded me of one of Clint Eastwood's early westerns, but its title still escapes my memory. B
Most of the movies I've watched recently have had some common undercurrents. I guess it's true that popular movies and books sometimes say as much or more about the time they were created as the subjects that they were supposed to be about.
Thursday, April 13, 2006
TV: Amazing Race 9 - Ep 7
The theme this week was shards -- ancient ruins, plate shards, glass shards, pottery shards, and the shards of a broken spirit.
Apparently, many of my friends were unaware of the time slot change for the Amazing Race resulting in low ratings. Hopefully we'll hear better news this week. But if CBS decides to cancel the series because the production costs were higher than the ad revenue, I'll blame Fran and Barry for damaging their car.
I must admit that was good editing by the Amazing Race producers though. When they showed the car parked next to the trees, my immediate thought was howa team may be easily distracted and smack into one of them, and then it was "BAM!" a short time later. Nice way to make me feel psychic.
And that rear ender bender was a slow point in what felt like a hectic episode. For the first time in what feels like many legs, the racers were bunched together again to fly from Sicily to Rome for literally just a caffe espresso before heading off to Greece. At least they got to see the Trevi Fountain and the Spanish Steps - to that I can just say, "Bella! Bella!"
It was a tough decision to take a cab or the metro to that area. I have not been to Rome - yet, but street traffic in any large city can always be unpredictable. In the end, the ones who chose the cab were faster. It may not have mattered much anyway as I think all the racers ended up on the same plane to Greece.
The DaVinci clue was pretty lame, and I say that not just because even the frat boys figured it out even though they acted as if they'd never seen that picture before. The tie-in for the upcoming movie was too obvious, but if it keeps the production in the black so the Amazing Race can live on a few more seasons, then I'll live with it. [And can I get my nickle for including the link to the site in my blog?]
Breaking dishes looked like fun (though it was like smashing stunt bottles in Germany). At first I thought the frat boys biggest challenge was to avoid being distracted by women. Now they need to add dangerous horseplay to that list. First falling backward in a wheelchair, and then jumping onto a pile of breakable plates and then getting a small cut from one of the shards. Then again maybe I'm showing signs of being raised by overly protective parents. Hopefully burning the fast forward in this leg will not be waste, but it probably will be.
In Greece, the Olympics challenge was just hilarious. Those Greek wrestlers actual put up a serious effort despite having to take on both team members at once. Strong man Ray shockingly did not have the coordination to throw a javelin as Mojo breezed past them.
I don't know how it happened once again, but the Oldsters were the slowest to a clue box yet keep staying alive due to huge mistakes by others. This time it was the hippies and the Lakers who broke the cardinal rule of carefully reading maps. I think Fran and Barry must be carrying a four-leaf clover with them or voodoo dolls of the other teams. They forgot to hit Ray and Yolanda with the hex this week as they managed to read their map and finish a more than decent second.
And so we bid "adio" to Lake, who despite scattered rain, completely dried up in exasperation and required his wife to calm him down. His "dang" quotes will be missed. It would have been fun to see his reaction to being in the Middle East next week. Maybe if he had packed doses of N2O, his team could have stayed in the race to the end.
Apparently, many of my friends were unaware of the time slot change for the Amazing Race resulting in low ratings. Hopefully we'll hear better news this week. But if CBS decides to cancel the series because the production costs were higher than the ad revenue, I'll blame Fran and Barry for damaging their car.
I must admit that was good editing by the Amazing Race producers though. When they showed the car parked next to the trees, my immediate thought was howa team may be easily distracted and smack into one of them, and then it was "BAM!" a short time later. Nice way to make me feel psychic.
And that rear ender bender was a slow point in what felt like a hectic episode. For the first time in what feels like many legs, the racers were bunched together again to fly from Sicily to Rome for literally just a caffe espresso before heading off to Greece. At least they got to see the Trevi Fountain and the Spanish Steps - to that I can just say, "Bella! Bella!"
It was a tough decision to take a cab or the metro to that area. I have not been to Rome - yet, but street traffic in any large city can always be unpredictable. In the end, the ones who chose the cab were faster. It may not have mattered much anyway as I think all the racers ended up on the same plane to Greece.
The DaVinci clue was pretty lame, and I say that not just because even the frat boys figured it out even though they acted as if they'd never seen that picture before. The tie-in for the upcoming movie was too obvious, but if it keeps the production in the black so the Amazing Race can live on a few more seasons, then I'll live with it. [And can I get my nickle for including the link to the site in my blog?]
Breaking dishes looked like fun (though it was like smashing stunt bottles in Germany). At first I thought the frat boys biggest challenge was to avoid being distracted by women. Now they need to add dangerous horseplay to that list. First falling backward in a wheelchair, and then jumping onto a pile of breakable plates and then getting a small cut from one of the shards. Then again maybe I'm showing signs of being raised by overly protective parents. Hopefully burning the fast forward in this leg will not be waste, but it probably will be.
In Greece, the Olympics challenge was just hilarious. Those Greek wrestlers actual put up a serious effort despite having to take on both team members at once. Strong man Ray shockingly did not have the coordination to throw a javelin as Mojo breezed past them.
I don't know how it happened once again, but the Oldsters were the slowest to a clue box yet keep staying alive due to huge mistakes by others. This time it was the hippies and the Lakers who broke the cardinal rule of carefully reading maps. I think Fran and Barry must be carrying a four-leaf clover with them or voodoo dolls of the other teams. They forgot to hit Ray and Yolanda with the hex this week as they managed to read their map and finish a more than decent second.
And so we bid "adio" to Lake, who despite scattered rain, completely dried up in exasperation and required his wife to calm him down. His "dang" quotes will be missed. It would have been fun to see his reaction to being in the Middle East next week. Maybe if he had packed doses of N2O, his team could have stayed in the race to the end.
Tuesday, April 11, 2006
M2C: Who'll Stop the Rain
- I was supposed to be attending my first SF Giants game of the season tonight, but that pesky rain has postponed the game by a couple of days. Only 31 rainouts over about 50 years is a decent record.
- If California does slide into the ocean it will be due to mud slides rather than earthquakes.
- Most of the times I've dislocated my shoulder, some form of rain was implicated.
- Traffic always worsens on a rainy day. But it's not because Californians don't know how to drive in this weather. The problem is they aren't even driving or paying attention to the road even when conditions are perfect. I've witnessed people driving while dialing numbers on their cell phones, putting on makeup, reading the newspaper, and watching (porn?) movies on their in-dash DVD players. Of course looking for this kind of violation means I'm distracted too... oops.
Exhibit A - Britney letting her baby drive.
Exhibit B - Owner letting poodle drive - (courtesy my cell phone camera)
Exhibit C - Me trying to use my cell phone to take a picture of a family of deer while driving (okay, in reality, I pulled over and rolled down my window and fumbled for my cell, which let them get much further away from my car, but this sounded funny)
- If California does slide into the ocean it will be due to mud slides rather than earthquakes.
- Most of the times I've dislocated my shoulder, some form of rain was implicated.
- Traffic always worsens on a rainy day. But it's not because Californians don't know how to drive in this weather. The problem is they aren't even driving or paying attention to the road even when conditions are perfect. I've witnessed people driving while dialing numbers on their cell phones, putting on makeup, reading the newspaper, and watching (porn?) movies on their in-dash DVD players. Of course looking for this kind of violation means I'm distracted too... oops.
Exhibit A - Britney letting her baby drive.
Exhibit B - Owner letting poodle drive - (courtesy my cell phone camera)
Exhibit C - Me trying to use my cell phone to take a picture of a family of deer while driving (okay, in reality, I pulled over and rolled down my window and fumbled for my cell, which let them get much further away from my car, but this sounded funny)
Thursday, April 06, 2006
TV: Amazing Race 9 - Ep 6
Kind of an interesting mish-mash of stuff happening this week. However, in the end it was a predictable finishing order as the teams spent more time touring the beautiful island of Sicily.
The hippies continued to have fun while staying at or near the head of the race. They played with a dog and put up a bogus "Official sign in sheet" at one of the challenges that the Frat Boys almost took seriously. The two teams talked as if they were turning into rivals (pixie dust... vs. dumb luck...), but there are some compromising photos floating around MySpace that may indicate they were all partying together a little too hard in Florida recently.
Nice editing by the producers by having Monica talk about how strong she is only to have her break down in tears at a later challenge. This time she got filthy, but wasn't loving it. Hauling a dead fish isn't my idea of fun either, and overall she's been a trooper. Joseph made a wise decision to listen to the woman and trust her counting abilities.
I also agree with Joseph's observation about how more open and trusting Europeans are with strangers compared to Americans. That still throws me for a loop sometimes. Ray and Yolanda escaped last place as they once again relied on the kindness of strangers to get directions everywhere (though some people found Ray intimidating later). Their relationship future looks like its getting brighter future, but I fear their chances of winning seem to be dimming just as quickly.
And leave it to Lake and Michelle to display no trust the locals at all as they had their money clips tightly secured onto their bodies. If they've had those things tied on like that during the whole race, then it might explain many of their mistakes -- blood circulation being cut off from their brains.
Kayak polo looks fun. But were those guys even trying to play defense against the contestants? Not sure why Ray thought he had to shoot from 3-point range. I expect to see Sicilian Kayak Polo matches on ESPN8 "The Ocho" someday.
Fran and Barry somehow keep plugging along and I'm not sure what the secret to their success is. I'd hesitate to buy fish from a sweaty, old guy with such hairy triceps (but I'm one to talk...). They win the quote of the week with "There's a fabulous statue ahead -- with no head!" [Cutaway to shot of a fabulous statue with no head.]
Funny scene - the hippies grabbing bear hugs from Monica as Joseph looks on with a "WTF?" expression. I guess the hippies learned a trick from the frat boys who did not get distracted by women this week (perhaps still mourning the loss of the Double-Ds).
Quick update - I just noticed my caption was chosen on the CBS TAR website (yes I sometimes go by Eric but that's another story). I thought I had an even better caption for last week's episode referencing "shrinkage" but maybe it was too risque for CBS (or they never watched Seinfeld).
The hippies continued to have fun while staying at or near the head of the race. They played with a dog and put up a bogus "Official sign in sheet" at one of the challenges that the Frat Boys almost took seriously. The two teams talked as if they were turning into rivals (pixie dust... vs. dumb luck...), but there are some compromising photos floating around MySpace that may indicate they were all partying together a little too hard in Florida recently.
Nice editing by the producers by having Monica talk about how strong she is only to have her break down in tears at a later challenge. This time she got filthy, but wasn't loving it. Hauling a dead fish isn't my idea of fun either, and overall she's been a trooper. Joseph made a wise decision to listen to the woman and trust her counting abilities.
I also agree with Joseph's observation about how more open and trusting Europeans are with strangers compared to Americans. That still throws me for a loop sometimes. Ray and Yolanda escaped last place as they once again relied on the kindness of strangers to get directions everywhere (though some people found Ray intimidating later). Their relationship future looks like its getting brighter future, but I fear their chances of winning seem to be dimming just as quickly.
And leave it to Lake and Michelle to display no trust the locals at all as they had their money clips tightly secured onto their bodies. If they've had those things tied on like that during the whole race, then it might explain many of their mistakes -- blood circulation being cut off from their brains.
Kayak polo looks fun. But were those guys even trying to play defense against the contestants? Not sure why Ray thought he had to shoot from 3-point range. I expect to see Sicilian Kayak Polo matches on ESPN8 "The Ocho" someday.
Fran and Barry somehow keep plugging along and I'm not sure what the secret to their success is. I'd hesitate to buy fish from a sweaty, old guy with such hairy triceps (but I'm one to talk...). They win the quote of the week with "There's a fabulous statue ahead -- with no head!" [Cutaway to shot of a fabulous statue with no head.]
Funny scene - the hippies grabbing bear hugs from Monica as Joseph looks on with a "WTF?" expression. I guess the hippies learned a trick from the frat boys who did not get distracted by women this week (perhaps still mourning the loss of the Double-Ds).
Quick update - I just noticed my caption was chosen on the CBS TAR website (yes I sometimes go by Eric but that's another story). I thought I had an even better caption for last week's episode referencing "shrinkage" but maybe it was too risque for CBS (or they never watched Seinfeld).
Wednesday, April 05, 2006
M2C: Blame it on the Rain
My two cents on all the rain in California:
From the Simpsons:
Lisa (concerned upon seeing Homer who had moved out of the house for some reason): Dad, where have you been staying?
Homer: Have you heard of the Four Seasons?
Lisa (relieved): Yes!
Homer: Good. Because that's what I've been living through while sleeping in the park.
Usually there are four seasons in the Bay Area: Rainy, Sunny (except for fog in SF and Daly City), Really Hot (right when school starts in September), and Chapped Lips. This year rainy season has decided to stick around for 5 or 6 months starting with tropical storms around October followed by the usual winter pattern. Now when it rains in Florida, it is like a 10 minute shower that just passes through town, and you can feel the humidity disappear just before and after the downpour, so it is almost a pleasant break. However, rain in SF is like that guest who doesn't have a clue when to leave. He just sticks around for days at a time, tells you depressing stories, and keeps you up all night with loud snoring.
It's been raining so much I forgot baseball spring training had come and gone because the rain usually stops by then. The Giants already have had one game rained out - in San Diego of all places. It almost never rains down there.
This is the first time I've gone on road trips and dreaded coming back home each time. Once this rain stops, I might have to spend a month or so hiding out from the mold and pollen (or whatever it is I am allergic to). Hmm... maybe Hawaii will be nice. I haven't sneezed in that state yet.
A few weeks ago, when the wind and rain was particularly nasty, I saw one of those overnight shipping guys struggling to tie down a cart full of boxes he was delivering. Then despite all that one strong gust knocked over most of the boxes and had them rolling like tumbleweeds in different directions. The guy was really quick in wrangling the boxes back together even before I could think of helping (I was way at the other end of the parking lot) with the wind and rain making me want to head for the warmth and safety of my car.
Anyway, if someone in my apartment complex recently received a brand new, but defective desktop computer, don't blame the vendor. Blame it on the rain, yeah yeah.
Weather and commentary to be continued...
From the Simpsons:
Lisa (concerned upon seeing Homer who had moved out of the house for some reason): Dad, where have you been staying?
Homer: Have you heard of the Four Seasons?
Lisa (relieved): Yes!
Homer: Good. Because that's what I've been living through while sleeping in the park.
Usually there are four seasons in the Bay Area: Rainy, Sunny (except for fog in SF and Daly City), Really Hot (right when school starts in September), and Chapped Lips. This year rainy season has decided to stick around for 5 or 6 months starting with tropical storms around October followed by the usual winter pattern. Now when it rains in Florida, it is like a 10 minute shower that just passes through town, and you can feel the humidity disappear just before and after the downpour, so it is almost a pleasant break. However, rain in SF is like that guest who doesn't have a clue when to leave. He just sticks around for days at a time, tells you depressing stories, and keeps you up all night with loud snoring.
It's been raining so much I forgot baseball spring training had come and gone because the rain usually stops by then. The Giants already have had one game rained out - in San Diego of all places. It almost never rains down there.
This is the first time I've gone on road trips and dreaded coming back home each time. Once this rain stops, I might have to spend a month or so hiding out from the mold and pollen (or whatever it is I am allergic to). Hmm... maybe Hawaii will be nice. I haven't sneezed in that state yet.
A few weeks ago, when the wind and rain was particularly nasty, I saw one of those overnight shipping guys struggling to tie down a cart full of boxes he was delivering. Then despite all that one strong gust knocked over most of the boxes and had them rolling like tumbleweeds in different directions. The guy was really quick in wrangling the boxes back together even before I could think of helping (I was way at the other end of the parking lot) with the wind and rain making me want to head for the warmth and safety of my car.
Anyway, if someone in my apartment complex recently received a brand new, but defective desktop computer, don't blame the vendor. Blame it on the rain, yeah yeah.
Weather and commentary to be continued...
Friday, March 31, 2006
TV: Amazing Race 9 - Ep 5
Slight delay in posting this week -- not because I was pouting about the Double-Ds elimination (though maybe I was), but because I had a bunch of meetings and after work activities did not allow me to watch the episode until now. Thank goodness for the DVR.
- A pox on Lake for using the Yield, but the Double-Ds still squandered several opportunities to beat other teams. I guess Long Island gals don't drive stick. And they aren't as familiar with the male anatomy as they might lead you to believe.
- I wonder how many microseconds of sadness the frat boys felt after learning of the Double-D's demise. I suspect only as long as it takes for them to spot another woman. And wouldn't it have been tragic if they were forced to retire from the race by injuring themselves while horsing around with the wheelchairs at the airport?
- Leave it to a Bay Area hippie to know how to navigate a German Travel Web site to find an English version.
- Ray and Yolanda would be near the top of the heap if they could just read a map and stop relying on others for directions. I fear they may suffer the same fate as Wanda and Desiree.
- I suppose I would have chosen the Bell at the detour, but if I knew I'd be the first to get to the laundry lines, then 20 out of 2400 chance of finding the right piece of clothing does not seem like bad odds to me.
- Were the clothes donated to charity afterward, or is it all in Phil's closet now?
- At least Fran and Berry only walked back and forth past the clue box for 5 or so minutes instead of 40 this time around. Hopefully, they'll remember to pay a visit to the optometrist after the race is over.
- You'd expect nerds to recognize the statue puzzle's trick faster than anybody else. But I guess they actually aren't in the science branch of the nerd species.
- The relationship cracks (beyond Lake and Michelle) are starting to show. This week the nerds, next week's preview shows some stress on MoJo. Let the fireworks begin.
- Looks like next week, the Amazing Race steals a page from The Apprentice and makes some teams try to sell stuff in a market. That might be entertaining.
- Sicily added to list of places to visit. The last time I heard the city Palermo mentioned, I was a mere child watching a great war movie titled Patton. Ancient sites and warm sandy beaches, what more could you ask of a dream vacation?
- A pox on Lake for using the Yield, but the Double-Ds still squandered several opportunities to beat other teams. I guess Long Island gals don't drive stick. And they aren't as familiar with the male anatomy as they might lead you to believe.
- I wonder how many microseconds of sadness the frat boys felt after learning of the Double-D's demise. I suspect only as long as it takes for them to spot another woman. And wouldn't it have been tragic if they were forced to retire from the race by injuring themselves while horsing around with the wheelchairs at the airport?
- Leave it to a Bay Area hippie to know how to navigate a German Travel Web site to find an English version.
- Ray and Yolanda would be near the top of the heap if they could just read a map and stop relying on others for directions. I fear they may suffer the same fate as Wanda and Desiree.
- I suppose I would have chosen the Bell at the detour, but if I knew I'd be the first to get to the laundry lines, then 20 out of 2400 chance of finding the right piece of clothing does not seem like bad odds to me.
- Were the clothes donated to charity afterward, or is it all in Phil's closet now?
- At least Fran and Berry only walked back and forth past the clue box for 5 or so minutes instead of 40 this time around. Hopefully, they'll remember to pay a visit to the optometrist after the race is over.
- You'd expect nerds to recognize the statue puzzle's trick faster than anybody else. But I guess they actually aren't in the science branch of the nerd species.
- The relationship cracks (beyond Lake and Michelle) are starting to show. This week the nerds, next week's preview shows some stress on MoJo. Let the fireworks begin.
- Looks like next week, the Amazing Race steals a page from The Apprentice and makes some teams try to sell stuff in a market. That might be entertaining.
- Sicily added to list of places to visit. The last time I heard the city Palermo mentioned, I was a mere child watching a great war movie titled Patton. Ancient sites and warm sandy beaches, what more could you ask of a dream vacation?
Wednesday, March 22, 2006
TV: Amazing Race 9 - Ep 4
Readers, the lesson for this week is "Learn to read a map." It might be difficult enough to find someone who speaks English in a foreign country, but maybe even rarer that the person can give good directions as well. But I understand the difficulties some teams may have had in Germany. Street names get concatenated together so you have to get used to separating out the -strasse and -platz parts when reading maps. The exit (ausfahrt) lane line markers confused me as well when I was out there. Anyhow map reading skills and a good sense of direction appeared to be what separated the teams from each other the most on this leg.
- I thought men were supposed to be the ones who never stop to ask for directions. The reference to Groundhog Day was appropriate considering how two teams were driving around in circles for a while. [OnDemand cable has been promoting this movie recently too. Coincidence?]
- Interesting decision to caption Michelle yelling "Oh shoot" presumably to avoid FCC fines.
- Was that a car ride or a luge run? That may be more effective than a double espresso for getting the juices flowing in the morning. That, or waking up to "I've Got You Babe" on the alarm clock / radio.
- The Florida guys asked a local if German women are hot. The response is along the lines of "Meh" with an implication that drinking beer helps. Later another team recruits help from a man walking down the street sort of in the middle of nowhere and saying he was too drunk to drive. Considering it was probably mid-morning at that point, he must have been seeing a beauty pageant the night before.
- Hopefully Eric and Jeremy are smart enough to wipe off the lipstick from the clue carrying fraulein before they recommence tongue wrestling with the DoubleDs.
- It would have been a very difficult detour for me either way. I'm not sure I'm coordinated to dance, but having someone break stunt bottles over my head for potentially several hours might bring back a mild concussion I suffered a few years ago. Both were funny to watch though.
- I wonder if Bavaria Film used for this Detour is the same studio that produced a cool little movie called Run Lola Run. [It's a mystery to me how I can recall random bits of info like that] And it had a tinge of Groundhog Day flavor in it. Coincidence?
- I hope the Amazing Race keeps the product placement tricks to a minimum. I stopped watching The Apprentice during the second season when it started turning into disguised info-mercials / merchandising for a string of sponsors.
- Santa? The Hippies might be trying a bit too hard for laughs, but I guess different people appreciate different types of humor. So who am I to complain? It's kind of like how some people find the repetition of Groundhog Day funny...
- I thought men were supposed to be the ones who never stop to ask for directions. The reference to Groundhog Day was appropriate considering how two teams were driving around in circles for a while. [OnDemand cable has been promoting this movie recently too. Coincidence?]
- Interesting decision to caption Michelle yelling "Oh shoot" presumably to avoid FCC fines.
- Was that a car ride or a luge run? That may be more effective than a double espresso for getting the juices flowing in the morning. That, or waking up to "I've Got You Babe" on the alarm clock / radio.
- The Florida guys asked a local if German women are hot. The response is along the lines of "Meh" with an implication that drinking beer helps. Later another team recruits help from a man walking down the street sort of in the middle of nowhere and saying he was too drunk to drive. Considering it was probably mid-morning at that point, he must have been seeing a beauty pageant the night before.
- Hopefully Eric and Jeremy are smart enough to wipe off the lipstick from the clue carrying fraulein before they recommence tongue wrestling with the DoubleDs.
- It would have been a very difficult detour for me either way. I'm not sure I'm coordinated to dance, but having someone break stunt bottles over my head for potentially several hours might bring back a mild concussion I suffered a few years ago. Both were funny to watch though.
- I wonder if Bavaria Film used for this Detour is the same studio that produced a cool little movie called Run Lola Run. [It's a mystery to me how I can recall random bits of info like that] And it had a tinge of Groundhog Day flavor in it. Coincidence?
- I hope the Amazing Race keeps the product placement tricks to a minimum. I stopped watching The Apprentice during the second season when it started turning into disguised info-mercials / merchandising for a string of sponsors.
- Santa? The Hippies might be trying a bit too hard for laughs, but I guess different people appreciate different types of humor. So who am I to complain? It's kind of like how some people find the repetition of Groundhog Day funny...
Sunday, March 19, 2006
Movies: V for Vendetta
For me, there's been a dearth of fun movies to watch between King Kong, which was not perfect but very enjoyable, and this weekend. V for Vendetta may mark an early start to the US "blockbuster" movie season (X-Men 3 coming out in May might be considered more of an official start).
The movie delivers the pre-requisite action and suspense that make action movies fun. These were even more enhanced by experiencing it in an IMAX theater (something I'll install in my mansion as soon as I win the lottery). Natalie Portman did a wonderful job. Some of the content may stir political discussion, though ultimately it is just a comic-book movie.
I imagine the movie is not as intricate as the 1980's graphic novel that it was based upon. Unfortunately I did not read that one even though it was from the same person who created Watchmen, one of my favorite stories from the days when I had more time and energy to read. So I don't know how much to say without giving away plot points. In short, interesting movie, but catch it in IMAX if you do watch it. B-
The movie delivers the pre-requisite action and suspense that make action movies fun. These were even more enhanced by experiencing it in an IMAX theater (something I'll install in my mansion as soon as I win the lottery). Natalie Portman did a wonderful job. Some of the content may stir political discussion, though ultimately it is just a comic-book movie.
I imagine the movie is not as intricate as the 1980's graphic novel that it was based upon. Unfortunately I did not read that one even though it was from the same person who created Watchmen, one of my favorite stories from the days when I had more time and energy to read. So I don't know how much to say without giving away plot points. In short, interesting movie, but catch it in IMAX if you do watch it. B-
Friday, March 17, 2006
Sports: Cal Basketball
The California Golden Bears men's basketball team lost in the first round of the NCAA tournament earlier today even though it was St. Patrick's Day and Cal's colors blended together would be green. But I didn't feel devastated about the loss. The team made great progress compared to last year and I hope they get even better next year. Hopefully someone will convince Leon Powe to stay in college another year (without breaking any rules of course).
I find college basketball more entertaining than the NBA. There's just more die-hard enthusiasm on the part of the players and the fans. The do or die nature of the tournament with potential upsets at any time is why it earns the nickname March Madness.
With the Bears out, I guess I can go back to catching up on things and not pay full attention to the remaining games. At least that is how I console myself.
The women's basketball team has done great as well by getting an invite to the tournament for the first time in many years and will be playing on Sunday.
Maybe Cal will get to the College Softball World Series again this year.
I may have just jinxed these teams just by printing this (reference earlier blog entry regarding Golden State Warriors)...
Anyhow Go BEARS!!
I find college basketball more entertaining than the NBA. There's just more die-hard enthusiasm on the part of the players and the fans. The do or die nature of the tournament with potential upsets at any time is why it earns the nickname March Madness.
With the Bears out, I guess I can go back to catching up on things and not pay full attention to the remaining games. At least that is how I console myself.
The women's basketball team has done great as well by getting an invite to the tournament for the first time in many years and will be playing on Sunday.
Maybe Cal will get to the College Softball World Series again this year.
I may have just jinxed these teams just by printing this (reference earlier blog entry regarding Golden State Warriors)...
Anyhow Go BEARS!!
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