Tree-like

 

Well, we finally did it. We got a "fake" tree. Actually, it's an anniversary present from the Queen & flyDad. For the last several years, we've been away for 1-2 weeks at Christmas. Spending $60-80 on a tree only to come home to find it completely dried out and having to spend hours cleaning up pine needles seemed impractical & dangerous. Artifical trees are a lot nicer than when I was a kid. This one setup in minutes and came with lights built in. So, now we get to enjoy the season without the Christmas tree argument.

We decorated today. Heck, Slick & the Queen even put up lights in the windows. It's rather festive around here.

My iPod Touch: Typing

This is a little interlude for the ongoing series of posts about the iPod Touch.

One of the great features of the iPod touch is the multi-touch screen. This allows me to actually type fairly efficiently. It lacks the tactile feel of dedicated texting devices and the auto-correct software can struggle with names and unusual words.

Still, with a little practice I've gotten efficient enough to publish this blog post using nothing but my thumbs.

My iPod Touch - Part Deux

Stop!

Consider reading My iPod Touch - Part 1 before moving on here.

Good to go? Excellent...

Let's get Technical

I have the 16gig 2G iPod Touch. I settled on 16gigs after weighing considerations between storage space & cost. I surmised, correctly, the 8gig version would not be sufficient for my storage needs. That bed was too small. The 32gig, while attractive, was just way too close to the cost of a new laptop. That bed was too big!

iPod Touch Techical Specifications
iPod Touch Features

Music, Music, Music...

Because my Nano "only" had a 2gig capacity, I was selective in my music choices. Currently, the digital portion of my music library is hovering around 6 gigs. That may sound like a big library. But truth be told, it's a modest sum. It's from a mix of sources including CDs, iTunes, free sources & other digital download sites. I probably have 50% of my CD collection that still hasn't been converted. The Nano's size meant that I was simply reluctant to unload favorite mixes to get at the bottom shelves of my music collection. Great stuff like Rush's Moving Pictures went unplayed. Other stuff like Sound Garden hasn't even been transfered from CD.

The first thing I did was load my entire digital collection onto the iPod Touch. The 8gig model would have been done then and there. With the 16gig model, I've started converting more CDs and adding them to the collection.

Now, the delema with that much music is playlists. You can forever make playlists and always miss music. You can hit shuffle on everything and never get a good mix. Apple added two really good features to their current Touch/iTunes software to help. First, they finally added playlist shuffle. This means that you can shuffle a playlist on the fly without have to resort. Second, they added Genius feature.

Genius is an "opt-in" option for iTunes. By opting in, you sync your music collection with Apple's database...

No really, I turned this feature on! It's an uncomfortable experience knowing that someone is looking over your shoulder even if they "claim" to make everything annonymous. Visions of the RIAA coming along with a Lawsuit to look over Apple's client info crept into my nightmares. Folks know that I'm a bit of a goody-goody and even I've got some "free" music scattered about my collection. But I digress...

Once the sync is complete, you can choose any song in your collection for iTunes Genius to create a 25-song playlist around. They also, not surprisingly, use it as a vehicle to "suggest" music from the iTunes store. At first it was "good." Then a recent iTunes update improved the song selection. Then last week's Touch software update 2.2 came along and made it even better by allowing me to Genius playlists directly on the Touch and to "refresh" song-based playlists when I'm ready for a change.

And the results?

Sometimes I get surprised when Dusty Springfield shows up on the same playlist as AudioSlave. And yet, on that playlist based on Seven Nation Army by White Stripe, it totally works. In fact, I'm hearing and loving songs that I've not heard in a long time. I, for whatever reason, rarely listed to any of my Pink Floyd, but now it's appearing on my Genius playlists.

Genius is yet another example of Apple's ability to make Net Neutrality, Open Source-lovin' types cringe. For those of you who don't know what this means, it's like Libertarians on the internet. We (yes I include myself in this crowd even though I'm an Apple-Lovin' Fool) want nothing less than a free and open internet where people "respect" intellectual property rights & privacy, yet share ideas, bandwidth & software freely. Apple's system is so controlling & invasive, but it's so amazingly good.

So, now you've got your music, your playlists, your Genius playlists and your ready to listen. Now, the Touch's cool-factor kicks in. The iPod Touch music navigation starts with a really efficient menu system and then converts to a cover-art flow. I've never been about the extras. Yet, the extras are just too cool to ignore. Skimming through my music collection with a flick of my finger is a fun experience.

But how does it Sound?

Sound quality, oddly, is a bit of a low priority for Apple. If you're a true Audiophile you hate MP3 music anyway. But, truthfully, the only thing holding my iPod back is the earbuds. Better earbuds, just like better speakers, make most digital music sound great.

Next post: the other stuff...
Which is to say a lot is still left to cover. We haven't talked about iPhone/Touch Apps yet. We haven't discussed WiFi access.

My iPod Touch - Part 1

Back in Sept my 1st Gen iPod Nano's battery stopped holding its charge. The charge was already going for months, but by Sept it was finished. The click wheel had also been giving me trouble for a few months. So, 3 months shy of it's 3rd birthday, my Nano was essentially dead. Now what?

The anti-iPod/iTunes crowd are right in their criticism of Apple's system. iPods are expensive. When the battery dies, you're kind of stuck. iTunes can be cumbersome. Apple's DRM system locks you in. I couldn't agree more with any of these complaints. Yet, my first instinct was another iPod. Heck, my 2nd, 3rd & 4th instincts were another iPod.

It was a great 3 years. I tend to take care of my gadgets, but when I like something - as I did my iPod - I use it a lot. The Nano went with me everywhere. I would use my Nano to walk, exercise, hike, work in the garage, nap, eat, clean, took it on my one and only trip to Europe, sit in coffee shops, grocery shop, even used it once to get a promotion at my old job (That's a funny story.)

When I went from Doctor's office to Doctor's office, from test to test trying to get a diagnosis for my Fibromyalgia, the iPod was there. When I learned that relaxation was an important part of managing my condition, I went straight to iTunes to download meditation podcasts onto my iPod. When I drove 12 hours to see my dying Grandmother in the hospital, my iPod (loaded with audio books) was my travel companion.

My wife openly admits that my iPod was the single best Christmas present she's ever given me. Whatever replaced my iPod had "big" yet small, portable shoes to fill.

At the same time as my iPod's unfortunate demise, 2 other events were occuring. First, we were coming to terms with the state of our 6 year old laptop. With it's minimal hard drive, dead battery & scratched up screen, it had long become little more than an over-sized email device. Second, Apple announced their new iPod lineup including the new 2nd Gen iPod Touch.

Why were these two events important? I knew that I needed a new MP3 device (or a repair of my Nano.) I also knew that we would have to start seriously considering something to replace the laptop. We both just got new desktops this year, so neither of us had any interest in buying another computer. Was there an alternative? I wanted an MP3 device. I wanted "mobile" access to my email and the web.

I wasn't considering a smart phone. Sure, I know plenty of people who love their Crackberries. iDad loves his iPhone. But, there was no long-term justification for the extra monthly cell phone costs. It just didn't fit my lifestyle or our budget. No, what I wanted was a portable WiFi device that would play music, videos, and games while allowing me to check my email & even do some web surfing. What I wanted was the new iPod Touch.

For a few more weeks, I pondered. The new generation Touch was minutes old. I'm purposefully not an early adopter. I'm skeptical of day-one reviews of products. The price tag was daunting. Still, the more I waited, watched, read, drove Slick nuts as I debated about it to her (not with her) the more I liked it. So, one day - perhaps out of a sheer desire to shut me up - Slick told me to buy one. I did.

Now, after nearly 2 months, I decided that it was finally time to write about it. Yes, I absolutely love the damn thing. But is it worth the insane cost? Yes and no. Did it replace my Nano, Laptop & even my Nintendo DS Lite? Yes and no. It's not flawless as the Apple-gushers might have you believe, but with the recent release of software version 2.2, it's getting even better. Mostly, it's right for me, but may not be right for you.

Every negative thing said about the new iPod Touch is 100% true. It's stupid expensive for an MP3 player. It's stupid small and lacking in Flash support for a web-surfing device. Most of the "Accelerometer" based games will suck your battery dead. For these reasons, people who waste their money buying these for their kids are either stupid or rich or both. Some 3rd-party applications crash regularly. Because it's not a phone, there are times when you can't check your email or use the web. It's basically an iPhone without the Phone or the camera. (Or the monthly service fees.) Did I mention that it was expensive? Did I mention the word stupid?

It's all true, but it's all missing the mark. The cost is high for an MP3 player. But it's not just an MP3 player. It's high for a video playback system. But it's not just a video playback system. It's also not just a portable gaming device or a mobile WiFi device. The Touch is not a "replacement" for a laptop or desktop, but a reasonable option when one is not available. It's all these things. You can find individual things that can do one part or another better, but the complete package is what makes it a very good value.

In Part 2, I'll break down the features, discuss issues like battery management & get into iTunes controls.

Frustrating Weekend

After a wonderful date w/ my wife Friday night, I was so eager to get my day started Saturday. I felt ready to be productive around the house, ready to for some solid gaming time on the 2nd full weekend of the new World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King expansion.

Then at 8:30AM, I realized that the "unthinkable" had happened with my gaming account. After years of system security obsession, my game password had been stolen. I had been Hacked. (Click the link to get the whole story.) Blizzard Entertainment had taken the necessary steps to freeze my account and start restoring my virtual stuff. Unfortunately, the damage had already been done. I obsessively needed to do a complete security review of every piece of hardware and software on my home network. No cleaning, yard work, meals or anything would get done until I knew that I knew the cause for this breach & had quashed it.

I'll skip the boring details and just say that I used "not my regular" computer to log on to WoW after it had been turned off for a while but before new virus definitions could be loaded. I should have, duh, changed my password (sooner than my usual once every 60 days) but it never dawned on me that I could actually have been hacked.

I'm back on the game today. I've made adjustments to my system security and have purchased authenticator keys which will make my video game security more protected than most online bank accounts. Sad really!

But, that one event was like a snowball at the top of a miserable weekend. I was pissy about the computer security. Slick was pissy about things needing to get done while I was dealing with the computers. Eventually we got a little pissy at eachother. Eventually we got a lot pissy at eachother. "Fights" are so rare in our household, that to have one on my birthday weekend is like the biggest anti-gift ever.

Thankfully, the whole thing became a catharsis for us. We both eventually started laughing and being really obnoxious with one another. Stuff started getting accomplished. And, while my account lock-out frustration kept rearing it's ugly head, we just kept moving past it to find "something better" to do with our time.

Sunday proved to be a bit better. Still no game access, but we moved passed that to get an over-due Costco trip out of the way. The house cleaning was finished for our guests. I accepted the reality of things. Slick played WoW and I watched my Tropic Thunder DvD from Netflix. Not our usual, intended, Sunday night, but it worked out.

It's going to be a good week with Slick's family and that's all that matters...that and questing after everyone goes to bed. Must level my Feral Druid Tank to 80 before Christmas vacation!

Bond, James Bond

Last night, Slick took me to see Quantum of Solace. Let me cut to the chase and say, I enjoyed it. Instead of giving a potentially spoiler-ridden review of the film, I bring context for the life-long Bond film fan.

In an odd way, I have not seen a more angry, driven 007 since License to Kill (1989.) Yes, I acknowledge that Dalton's two lackluster outings are barely worth mentioning in the cannon of Bond films, but hear me out. Of the 22 (23, or do you really think "we" could forget Never Say Never Again!) theatrical releases, three stand out above all others as containing moments where Bond reached real moments of happiness, even contentment only to have them shattered by tragedy that can't just be forgotten with a quip, a drink & a one-night stand.

One was Felix's wedding at the beginning of License to Kill. One dead Mrs Leiter & a shark-eaten Felix later and we have Bond forgetting Queen & Country and focusing only on revenge. It was a disappointing film, yes, but it's still the best way I can describe Bond's mindset at the start of Quantum. Or is it?

Consider if you will, On Her Majesty's Secret Service (1969.) At the end of this singular George Lazenby (who?) portrayal, Bond gets married to Tracy only to have her killed by Blofeld in the closing sequence. Yes, Lazenby was a disappointing Bond. But, it was one of my favorite Bond films. (Just missed my top 5 at #6!) And it ended tragically with the death of Bond's one true love. "There is no hurry...We have all the time in the world."

Tracy Bond is the "one true love" alluded to throughout over 40 years of Bond films. When Bond drinks all those Martini's and sleeps with all those women, is he trying to block out all the faces of all the men he's killed or is he trying to forget the face of that one woman?

Unfortunately, Bond fans had to wait over a decade (6 Bond films) for anything remotely qualifying as "continuity" for the opening sequence of For Your Eyes Only (1981.) Sadly, this continuity comes only as part of a truly disappointing opening sequences. Here we see Bond at Tracy's graveside before a harrowing remote-controlled helicopter ride at the hands of Blofeld. (Remember that one?)

What might have been if Sean Connery or a very young Roger Moore had been given the opportunity to chase Blofeld & Specter for the death of his wife in an entire film?

This is the true beauty of the Daniel Craig reboot. Unlike the decade following Tracy Bond's film death, we didn't have to wait to see the weakest of all Bond pre-credit opening sequences to see Bond get Blofeld. Unlike License to Kill, we didn't have to agonize through a bad 80's drug-lord story-line to see Bond driven for blood.

Casino Royale (2006) brought us the new Tracy, aka Vesper, for a new era. And in this new era, Quantum tosses aside Bond-film tradition and picks up where we left off, with an angry Bond grappling with loss, betrayal, resentment and a growing addiction to vodka. To make it worse for Bond, everyone else that he's remotely close to end up in danger in this film. This just serves to fuel the fire. It is pulse pounding. And how does Craig pull it off?

Craig's Bond in Quantum is a joyless, haunted killer on the verge of falling off a cliff. Gone is the disarming charm of Sean Connery or the silly ease of Roger Moore. But gone too is the forgettable acting of Lazenby and Dalton. Where Pierce Brosnan might have taken all the best laughs from Connery and Moore, Craig has taken all of their screen presence.

It is Bond's joylessness that has simultaneously become my biggest lament and biggest cause for praise of this film.

As for actual stuff about the film? Do you expect me to talk? No Mr Reader, I expect you to see the film!

Bonus Material:

LRN talks favorite Bond Films - I can pick out favorite moments from just about every Bond film. The second I start singling out 4 or 5 "favorites" someone will quickly ask how I can forget From Russia with Love or For Your Eyes Only. To you I say, make your own list!

- The Spy Who Loved Me (1977) - While Eva Green, aka Vesper, nearly dethroned her, Barbara Bach, aka Agent Triple X, is my favorite Bond "girl." This is the movie with the Lotus Esprit as a sub. The hot Russian agent, the return of Jaws to kill them both, Roger Moore at his prime and one hell of a kickass opening downhill ski chase.

- Goldfinger (1964) - When accounting for favorite Bond, best overall plot, villain, and considering everything that should be in a Bond film, this is my OTHER favorite Bond film. Not only does it have two of the best Bond quotes, it's got Oddjob! And..."My name is Pussy Galore." "Of course you are!"

- Octopussy (1983) - Perhaps it was because I first saw it at just the right age to start getting the sexual references. Perhaps I just loved the Bede BD-5J mini-Jet. Octopussy is a personal favorite without any redeeming qualities.

- Tomorrow Never Dies (1997) - I still contend that Pierce Brosnan got the Bond role 10 years too late. But, then again, if he had gotten it "on time" he may never have gotten to team up with Michelle Yeoh for one of the most creative motorcycle chases in film.

- Casino Royale (2006) - I admit being perfectly blown away by Craig's opening sequence, by Eva Green's piercing eyes, Judi Dench's solidly locking down her place as the best M of them all and the best overall Bond plot since the early days of Dr No & From Russia with Love.

And where do I stack the new movie up with these? That remains to be seen.

PS. Opening sequence music was meh! I like Jack White. I appreciate Alicia Keys. I think they should have listened to Sheena Easton, Duran Duran, Paul McCartney's openings a little more. They knew Bond music. Granted, big surprise, my favorite Bond song is from my favorite Bond movie because Nobody Does It Better sung by Carly Simon.

PPS. To Avouz & Crash, my fellow Bond geeks, it's good! You will not be disappointed!

Pathetic

At approximately 11:20 AM EST, it dawned on me that today might, in fact, be November 21st.

One seriously has to question the sanity of someone who can get through the entire morning without realizing it's his birthday.

Sigh!

Star Wars vs Star Trek

This is a follow-up of sorts to my really negative review of the Clone Wars DvD last week.

First up, the new Star Trek movie trailer is up and it's absolutely perfect.

Official Star Trek Trailer

Once in a great while, a trailer comes along that just gets me jacked up for a movie. The first Spiderman movie trailer, the first trailer for Watchmen with the Smashing Pumpkins music as the background, etc.

I am so jacked up about JJAbrams reboot of Star Trek, words can not describe...

But I digress.

So, what does this have to do with Star Wars? I'll let Scott Kurtz do my talking for me.


Sometimes guys like Kurtz, Johnson & Kovalic are able to say things in comics that we would never dare say and yet they just sum up everything in a few comic panels.

Of course, none of these "titans" of online comics do it better than XKCD.

Recent State Anti-Gay Marriage Laws

Anyone else really bothered that states are passing laws to systematically treat a group of people as second-class citizens?

I would like very well to respect the "moral" arguments of fellow Christians and other religious people. I try really hard. The so-called moral decline of our society is a farce. Were we more or less moral after the Emancipation Proclamation or Women's Suffrage? Shall we undo those? And if so, how far back would people like to go for a more pure and moral society?

Shall we return to the time of Prohibition? Because, those were certainly moral times. Further? The Constitution? Folks were certainly less rebellious before then. Oh I know, let's go back to the times of Puritanism. Yeah, nothing like a good witch burning! Screw it, not moral enough. Clearly, all this is sinfulness is the result of so-called individual rights. Let's forget about the Magna Carta while we're at it.

Still not far enough back. Shoot, the Cruisades were an up-right "Christian" period. Just have to pick one. I mean, if we can't bring morality to the world by looting and pillaging once or twice, we'll try nine times over several hundred years just to make sure!

If I keep going back, I'll get all the way back to Sodom and Gomorrah right? The basis for every half-baked argument against gay rights. Yes, that's why all of society's problems are because of us Liberals right?

Everyone seems to have a lot of hang-ups about sex. (We seem fine with a little violence, but I digress...) I understand this is hard to wrap our brains around because of all "our" collective hangups, but Gay Marriage is not about Sex! It's about the rights of two equal people to share their lives together and receive the same legal and societal rights as anyone else.

And before the cowards start arguing that opening the law to gay marriage suddenly opens the law to other types of unions, just don't! One injustice a moral-buffer does not make. Defend or attack the rights of gays on their own basis. Do not lump them into the moral quagmire of other "alternative" forms of relationships.

Sorry for the rant. It's late, I've had a two-day migraine, I can't sleep and the top story on MSNBC was about this shit.

Clone Wars

Every now and then a movie or video game disappoints me even when I've already set my expectations impossibly low. This is one of those times.

The new Star Wars: The Clone Wars animated feature recently arrived on DvD and found it's way into my Netflix queue. It was "highly" anticipated this summer, but I skipped it to watch on my small, yet big, screen. This new story of the intervening years between episodes 2 & 3, was also the launch-point for the new series appearing on Cartoon Network.

I have stated, numerous times to anyone who would listen, that the original Cartoon Network series of animated shorts is one of the finest parts of the Star Wars saga. The artistic style made famous in the Emmy award-winning Samaria Jack series was further proof that American animation could be as inventive and revolutionary as Japanese Anime. It was also further testimony that the animated medium could offer quality and compelling story-telling for adults and still be accessible for kids. It also saved the larger Star Wars saga for me, enabling me to rewatch the prequels and even connect with Anakin Skywalker.

Alas, Lucas Films is clearly plotting to destroy my last best hope for preserving my favorite childhood franchise with their latest film.

I want to start by saying that the film wasn't "bad." Nor can I say that the CGI was "bad." Sure, I miss the old animated style and that longing was sure to taint my perspective. They did a fine job. It wasn't mind blowing good. I think it should have been their goal. Knowing that they wanted to morph this into a weekly TV show probably shaped their decisions. If it was too perfect, the bar would be way too high to reproduce week in and week out. Still, my issue was and is not with the CGI.

The film had horrible pacing. The acting and dialog was so-so. There were times when I actively wondered if the actors had all done their lines separately in sound rooms and then it was all spliced together. The best animation can be destroyed by really bad acting. It's why some Anime (like Akira) must be watched in it's original Japanese. Inflection, tone, mood, interaction are all set by good voices doing their jobs right. That's not to say I disliked their voices, but it just didn't work.

It felt like a kids movie and not in a good way. I know that Lucas' intended goal was to make this for younger viewers. I don't fault him there. But great films for kids end up being great films for adults too. Movies like Disney's Aladin or Pixar's Finding Nemo are instant classics for all ages. I know adults who quote Finding Nemo that don't even have kids. That's quality cinema. So, I refuse to give Lucas a pass for the "Huttling" or the totally Gay Uncle the Hut. In fact, Lucas should be ashamed for drawing on such classic stereotypes for creating characters like that. Especially when the film is aimed at kids. Star Wars has it's androgynous token gay character. Adding a "flamboyant" hutt was in poor taste.

Still, the failure of the film was not the animation style, the phoned in voices, the bad choices in character creation, or even the truly flimsy plot (which was waifer thin.) No, the agregious problem was pacing.

It could have easily been done as 2 to 3 part premier episode of a TV series. It didn't have a sweeping movie plot. It didn't transition from event to event well. The sense of drama was completely lost. The big climatic moment of the film perfectly positioned itself to make a nice squishy plop like that of a freshly produced cow-pie. It was warm, stinky and you really wanted to avoid stepping in it. So close to a real Star Wars fight, but no.

And so, this is what they want us to ignore/replace the original Clone Wars series with? This marketing contrived, shallow, cow-pie of a movie?

I was so utterly disappointed with this film, I paused it several times to do some email, make some calls, by my wife's birthday presents on Amazon.com. Each time I went back expecting the next scene to be the one that propells this new franchise and convinces me to spend money to watch future episodes on DvD or iTunes.

Use the FORCE George, because it's the only thing you've got keeping me from never looking at another Star Wars product again.

Fybro Update

The roller coaster ride continues this fall. I have a few good days followed by a few bad days. It took me 4 days to rebound from going to the Obama rally. I'm not regretting it, but it was hard. Over the weekend, we did some much needed yard work & were really busy. By mid-Monday, I felt like I had hit a brick wall. The fatigue the last few days has been really rough, but general pain is still down.

I also had my first "Ambien" events last week.

On Monday night, I fell asleep on the recliner until after 4AM and then could barely stand up to get myself into bed. On Tuesday night, I apparently got up, turned on the lights and used the bathroom and then went back to bed without turning the lights off. Slick reported this to me, but I have no memory of the event. Things are really out of sync.

Neither of these compare to what happened Saturday...

I was reading on the couch waiting for sleepiness to kick in, but it never seemed to. So, I got up and looked at my music library on iTunes. At some point the meds kicked in, but I didn't actually fall asleep. I just kept on surfing and then went to bed. I remember doing all this and yet it's all sort of vague. The next morning I found that i had bought several videos in the iTunes store. I have since changed my settings to make it harder to purchase things. One-click shopping is bad for sleepwalkers!

I was really embarrassed about that one and pissed at myself. I'm getting over it. Blogging about it and letting you share in my misery helps.

On Wednesday, I had a 4-week checkup to see how I'm doing with the Lyrica. I reported my sleepwalking to my Doctor along with my other symptoms.

The Lyrica and the Ambien together are probably doing this. Since, my Doctor wants to double my Lyrica dose now, we're going to try to see if I can be weaned off the Ambien.

Needless to say that my body is really pissed off at me today. I'm tired, I hurt, I didn't sleep well last night and I think I'm experiencing side-effects from the increased Lyrica dose. It's going to be a really fun couple days as I adjust.

Geek Anniversary Presents

Ten years ago this week, Slick and I were in Hawaii on our honeymoon. It was our intent to go back in 5 and then in 10. Neither year has been particularly good years for spending the time or money to do so. So, what are we doing to celebrate 10 years?

On Friday, I made a romantic dinner complete w/ roses, candlelight, champagne, and all that stuff.

Today, we get our gifts. It's 2 copies of the new World of Warcraft expansion, Wrath of the Lich King which came out today.

I'm in the middle of installing the expansion on both computers while I type. This weekend we'll lock ourselves in the computer room madly leveling in brand new content only to emerge for food and to take the dog out.

Yes, instead of black sand beaches, we're killing virtual undead on a frozen wasteland located in a server in California.

Isn't it romantic?

The Versatility of Karl Urban

Every now and then, Hollywood gives us an actor with versatility and the "hey wait, isn't that..." surprise. The amazing thing is the number of these guys who've been in Lord of the Rings. And yet, few seem to surprise me like Karl Urban. He's no leading man. He's not academy award kind of guy. Yet he's gotten some interesting supporting roles & he changes with the role.

It's hard to connect the assassin from Bourne Supremacy to Eomer in Lord of the Rings to Vaako from the Chronicles of Riddick, but I assure you that they are all the same guy. And now, to really shock and confuse your senses, I realized today that he's playing the new JJ.Abrams version of Dr McCoy from the USS Enterprise!

Frankly, I don't know which is more unsettling; hearing Silar say "Illogical" or hearing Vaako say, "He's dead, Jim!" Sadly, I have to wait until May to hear both.

Be Careful What You Say

Several months ago, iDad jokingly challenged me that if I could "deliver" the state of North Carolina for Obama he would pay for a year of lawn care service. For weeks, he would razz me about how he was giving Connecticut to Obama and how if only I could deliver North Carolina then I wouldn't have to worry about my lawn. Then with the economic crisis, the tide started turning. iDad started backpeddling.

And now, with NBC announcing that Obama is the apparent winner in North Carolina, I just have one question.

iDad, when should I expect the work crews? I could really use one more mow and the leaves are starting to fall.

Voting @ 5:45AM

This one is from iDad. He arrived at the polls at 5:45 AM and was greeted by a line.

#304

I'm sitting at the little coffee shop in town drinking my free coffee for voting and surfing on my iPod touch via the shop's wifi.

Slick reported that she stood in line for an hour, but I was in and out in 5 minutes with no wait.

It's been an awesome time following this election. Hope for a happy ending tonight.

Unfiltered Photos

I took over 100 shots during the rally on Monday & made three very short videos. There are some good shots, but most of it's crap, but instead of cleaning and filtering, I'm just going to let you see them all on my web album. Why? Because, the shots - good and bad - paint a good picture of the hours upon hours I spent standing around waiting for the speech.

Obama Rally UNC Charlotte 11-03-08

Enjoy!

Exciting Day

Barack Obama Gives An Emotional Speach at UNC Charlotte

I'm home. I survived the drive, the bus ride to the event, the mile-long line, the hours of waiting in the rain and the horrible lines waiting to get back on the buses. I have over a hundred pictures from the event which I plan to upload unfiltered in a day or two for you all. I'm too tired to really go into the whole experience. He cried a bit when he talked about his grandmother and clearly went off-prompter for it. Otherwise, it was all the same stuff I've seen/heard him say on the stump these last few months.

The big, most inspiring thing was the diversity of the crowd (obviously bolstered by the students of UNCC.)

EST Sucks

I love daylight savings time. Eastern Standard Time sucks. The only real problem I've ever had with EDT is the time adjustment playing online games with our friend living in Thailand. Now that we're back to "regular" time, it's a 12-hour difference. Aside from that, I see no intrinsic value to EST. When the sun suddenly set at 5:30 today, it just felt screwy. All I get from this so called "regular" time is less sunlight and a need to remember to turn on the front lights before Slick comes home. I don't understand why we can't just say screw it and adjust all the clocks 1 hour and be done with it. Who needs extra daylight first thing in the morning?

Seriously, if I wanted less light to be a "feature" I would move to Canada. Granted, if McCain wins on Tuesday...

There's A Place For Caps

Slick and I went to Linens & Things today. She's been talking about getting some new bedding for a while & since they are going out of business, there's a huge sale.

Slick spotted this "Cap Rack" that hooks to closet doors & holds up to 9 hats. Well, I've needed a place to store my hats. It seems that all over the house on numerous chairs & hooks is inappropriate.

Yes, I know...

I need more Phillies hats!

Note: Sing this post title to "There's a place for us."