Wednesday, August 31, 2005

A day after the devastation in the south there's looting in Louisiana and mayhem in Mississippi and I have to say if one were going to shoplift then right after a major disaster such as Katrina would be the time to do it. Just beware of the cops with the shotguns ordering people to drop their loot.

The first great new show of the tv season is Fox's Prison Break, or as I like to call it, this year's 24. It follows structural designer Michael Scofield and his plan to get himself put away in the same maximum security prison as his brother. Michael's brother is played by hunkalicious Dominic Purcell who was on the short lived tv show John Doe. Purcell's character, Lincoln, was convicted of killing the Vice President's brother. No, not the v.p. of GMC, the v.p. of the free world. All of the evidence pointed to his guilt but Michael is certain there's been a cover up and that Lincoln was framed. Once inside the prison, Michael starts his plan in motion. The show features, in just the first two episodes, a riot, the shooting of a bishop, and the chopping off of a characters pinky toe with garden shears. It should be interesting with twists and turns galore and a conspiracy that may go right to the top of the U.S. government. Helping Michael and his brother is lawyer Veronica, who was once romantically involved with Lincoln. Oh, and there's one more snag: Lincoln is set to be executed in 90 days. I don't think it's a coincidence that Purcell's character is named Lincoln (possibly after our 16th president).

Don't cross us: Since 1983 the Red Cross has prohibited any man, who's had sex with another man since 1977, from giving blood. Now comes news that gay friendly churches and organizations in Ohio are refusing to host bloodmobiles. Also gay tolerant volunteers who might otherwise help out with such efforts such as disaster relief are starting to turn against the Red Cross. Australia and the Netherlands are backing away from the prohibitive policy. The testing of blood has come a long way since 1983 and I think it's time the Red Cross stopped the discrimination. A whole population out there is being denied permission to give blood in a nation where blood shortage is a common occurrence. Kudos to other countries that are realizing the absurdity of prohibiting gay men from giving blood. It's just like all of the other nations around the U.S. that are granting same sex couples all of the rights of marriage that different sex couples have. Maybe, as a country, we are still in the dark ages.

Enjoy your day but not in the dark,

paul

Tuesday, August 30, 2005


The Hualapai tribe is spending $40 million dollars to turn 1,000 acres of land into a major tourist attraction. The land will feature a Western-themed town, an Indian village and a glass skywalk that will jut out 70 feet from the Grand Canyon. This picture was done by an artist and based on this picture the glass walk looks awesome. Expected to open in January it would probably be amazing to watch this being built.
Mother nature has struck again: Mississippi, Alabama, Louisiana all hit hard by Katrina. Over 20 feet of water, damage in the billions of dollars, and people's whole lives literally washed away. Mother nature seems intent on showing us the massive strength and power that she holds.

Jaw dropper of the day: A man in Savannah, Ga, will think twice before attempting to rob a bank. Michael Lyons was celebrating his 13yr-old daughter's birthday with a group of other 13 year olds when he gave a note to one of the girls to give to one of the tellers inside the bank. The note read, 'Give me all of your money, this is a stick up.' Needless to say the teller pressed the alarm and police promptly responded. All they found in the way of criminals was Lyons and the girls. Lyons is charged with criminal intent of robbery by intimidation.

Wherever you are today, enjoy and pray for our sisters and brothers in the South.

Monday, August 29, 2005


The big story this morning is of course Big Meana Katrina. She's no longer a category 5 storm but still mighty deadly and threatens to cause catastrophic damage to New Orleans. Here is a pic of Fort Lauderdale, FL from Aug 25. The sand from the beach is blown around. Since 1900 there have only been three cat 5 storms and they've only had names since 1950. The three we've had were in 35, 69, and 92. The one in 35 hit the Florida Keys. 1969 saw the arrival of Camille as she slammed into Mississippi and Louisiana and 92's storm was Andrew as he devestated Florida.

Another story out of Spain this morning is the running of the bulls. 63 people were injured during this sport and two were seriously injured. The injuries happened as a result of a pileup at the bullring's entrance which is where the run ends. The bulls weigh up to 1,300 pounds. What a wonderful idea, let's see if we can outrun these huge animals before they gore us or trample over us. Why?

Enjoy your day,

paul

Sunday, August 28, 2005

The hilarious movie The 40-year-old Virgin is #1 at the box office for the 2nd week. I'm so glad it kept the top spot, it's a fun movie with a lot of funny lines.

I can't even imagine having to deal with the situation in New Orleans. Over a million people trying to leave the city and having the threat of a completely flooded city.

Jaw dropper of the day: World-Toilet Organisation, the Singapore based company is offering a course at the Toilet College. Students will learn such things as changing bulbs, getting rid of urine salt in the toilet, and technical cleaning. The first 30 students will begin their training in October and the course is designed to teach cleaners to improve their lavatory cleaning skills. I wonder if the chairs in the classroom are actually toilet seats.

Enjoy your evening,

paul

Saturday, August 27, 2005

The breeze this morning was, as my spouse likes to say, delicious. It's warmed up a bit but is only about 80, although I think it feels warmer.

We rented the movie Guess Who with Bernie Mac and Ashton Kutcher. Guess Who is an updated remake of the 1967 film Guess Who's Coming To Dinner? That film starred Spencer Tracy, Sidney Poitier and Katharine Hepburn. Guess Who has 2 maybe 3 funny moments in the whole film. Otherwise it is predictable and ho-hum, although it is entertaining. The special features (which is usually my favorite part of a dvd) are lame except for the previews of upcoming films. There is a preview of Rent which comes out in November and a non-scene preview of next year's The Da Vinci Code. It's a trailer that shows no scenes from the movie (hmmm could that be because it's still being filmed? Probably).

Speaking of movies, here are the films that I just have to see this fall (or life won't be worth living). I'm so glad I'm not dramatic.

Flightplan: Jodie Foster is back. She last kicked butt in the thriller Panic Room and now she's back kicking butt 40,000 feet in the air. She plays a mom who's daughter disappears on a transatlantic flight. Is she telling the truth or is she some whacked out escaped mental patient?

Proof: Originally done on the stage this film, directed by Shakespeare in Love's John Madden, stars Gwyneth Paltrow (who was directed to an Oscar in Shakespeare) plays daughter to Anthony Hopkins's brilliant mathematician. He's also mentally ill. Yes, it does sound like A Beautiful Mind but it does have a good cast. It will either be really good or really depressing....or both.

Syriana: A CIA agent looking for a terrorist in the Middle East. Sounds heavy and not the sort of film I'd usually want to see. It does star George Clooney though and for me he is eye candy. Yes, even with 35 pounds packed on and his beard and salt and pepper hair, and dreamy eyes... Oh sorry, I forgot where I was.

Walk The Line: Or as I like to call it, this year's Ray. Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon play Johnny and June Carter Cash. They supposedly do their own singing and are already being called major Oscar contenders. We'll see.....

Harry Potter and the Goblet Of Fire: The wizarding tournament, the Quidditch, the death of one of the students, the rebirth of Lord Voldemort (played by Ralph Fiennes, so vicious and creepy in Schindler's List) and the turn from happy go lucky Hogwarts to deadly serious and loss of innocence. Oooooooooo

Rent: Adapted from Jonathan Larson's Tony- and Pulitzer- winning musical (he died right before it hit the stage). Only two of the major cast members were not in the Broadway version of the show. This film could be this year's Chicago or it could be a major flop. I've got my fingers crossed for the former outcome.

The Producers: Not out until December but I'm looking forward to seeing this and thankfully it has the two stars from the Broadway show. Those stars are of course Nathan Lane (my Natey is back) and Matthew Broderick. It would have been nice to have seen these two performers live but I'll have to pay a lot less to see them this way.

Brokeback Mountain: Jake Gyllenhaal and Heath Ledger play gay cowboys in a film that promises to be daring and risque. Yeah, we'll see.

These movies are not movies that I have to see but probably will see just because they will no doubt be event movies.

King Kong: Peter Jackson (the hobbit who directed some film called The Lord of the Rings). Naomi Watts plays the role made famous by Fay Wray in the film that boasts cool special effects.

All The King's Men: Another remake, I know. The original film (based on a book, so it wasn't original to begin with) won the Oscar for Best Pic and took two acting awards. The new cast screams Academy Award: Kate Winslet, Jude Law, Sean Penn, James Gandolfini, Kathy Baker, and Anthony Hopkins.

The Chronicles of Narnia: The adaptation of C.S. Lewis's first book of his seven part series. Could be this year's Lord of the Rings.

As they say; See you at the movies.

That's it for now. Enjoy the rest of your Saturday.

paul

Friday, August 26, 2005


Check out this pic of a streaker at the Jackson Hole, Wyoming demolition derby. Police officers brought him down and then one deputy tasered him in the back as over 3,000 spectators looked on. I wonder if he really needed something as big as a fire extinguisher to cover himself. The blue globe is something added to the pic to cover his other (ass)ets.
Ok, I'm officially sick of driving through Geneseo. When I first moved to the area, Geneseo was busy as it is a college town but there was no Enterprise, there was no Cingular, there was no KFC and Taco Bell, there was no Aldi's and there was no Tim Horton's (which just opened). There was no road across the street from Wegman's and now there is a road and as if one Wal-Mart wasn't enough now they have to build another one; a Wal-Mart Super Center. Heaven only knows what's going to go into the old Wal-Mart building. From now on I will NOT drive through that town unless I'm dying and there's a hospital there and it's the only hospital that will take me. I'm so glad I'm no dramatic.

This Oscar business is really starting to become an obsession. I like the Oscars, a lot. Not only have I channeled my inner nerd and memorized all of the winners of Picture, Director, Actor, Actress, Supporting Actor and Supporting Actress but now I'm watching all of the films that won one of those awards that I've never seen. I went to one of the big libraries in the city today and checked out four movies that I had never seen that were major Oscar winners of some sort (two of which I really don't want to watch because they are musicals but will anyway). It's almost like I'm taking a college course. Which isn't that far off since I took a couple of film courses in college. I saw three other older movies I had never seen that I wanted to see but denied myself because they had nothing to do with Oscar. One of those movies was the original The Ladykillers with Alec Guinness and Peter Sellers. Peter Sellers is the main reason I wanted the movie. Ever since I saw him in Being There I find myself wanting to see some of his other work; besides the Pink Panther.

Well I hope you are enjoying your Friday. I am and now I'm going to turn on and tune in.

paul

Thursday, August 25, 2005

My Oscar video pick of the week is a good-natured and heartwarming story made in 1979 about a simpleton (read: mentally challenged) who goes from being a nobody to knowing the President of the US. Being There tells the story of Chance the Gardener, aka Chauncey Gardiner, who doesn't seem to exist. He has learned everything he knows from watching tv. After a slight misfortune he meets Eve (played nicely by Shirley MacLaine) and her husband, financial tycoon Rand. Peter Sellers plays Chance and I haven't seen a lot of Peter Sellers's films but I know a good performance when I see one. Sellers is truly wonderful in the movie and doesn't play Chance as a victim or a joke. Everyone who meets Chance/Chauncey is quite taken with him. Because of his silence and cryptic answers and the suits he wears people think Chauncey is a brilliant, intelligent and well-bred man. What I knew about this movie before watching it: It was Sellers's penultimate (I really like that word) role, he had been nominated for an Oscar, it had a man who was dying. I did some research after watching the film and found out that the thinking is Sellers lost the Oscar (to Dustin Hoffman) because of the blooper scene that played over the end credits. It's quite funny, don't get me wrong (although the scene was NOT in the movie) but it did not fit at all with the rest of the movie and should not have been played over the credits. It was a violation of the movie and I believe that's why Sellers didn't get the Oscar that year. I've seen Hoffman in Kramer vs. Kramer (the role he won for) and I believe Sellers had the better role and was more talented. Not to mention dashing, sexy. Melvyn Douglas who played the financial tycoon won the award for Supporting Actor and Shirley MacLaine should have been nominated for her performance for the masturbation scene alone. I also read after watching the film that Laurence Olivier had been offered the role of Chance but didn't want to be in a scene in which MacLaine had to masturbate (it's one of the best scenes).
Sometimes the Academy gets it so right and sometimes they get it so wrong. Sellers was robbed but don't let that stop you from seeing Being There.
According to tests run on frozen urine samples from 1999, Lance Armstrong had EPO in his system. EPO is a substance that boosts red-blood cells. Armstrong has defiantly denied that there was EPO in the samples and all of the other samples tested since then have been negative. I'm not saying that Lance Armstrong is guilty or not guilty what I am saying is this: Baltimore Orioles player Rafael Palmiero vehemently denied that he used steroids and then got caught with them in his system, Jose Canseco admitted to using steroids, Mark McGuire refused to answer whether or not he did (but did use Andro at one time) so what's the difference between them saying they never used drugs and getting caught and Lance Armstrong?

Jaw dropper of the day: Or should I say eye dropper? An eye doctor in South Orange, NJ, was performing a cataract surgery when an SUV crashed into the building. The doctor had just put in the silicone lens with a plunger (probably not the kind used in the bathroom) when the vehicle smashed through the wall and stopped short of hitting the doctor and the patient. The doctor was thrown onto the patient (who wasn't totally sedated by the way) and only missed being hit because the vehicle's rear tires hit the curb. The 77-year old driver was backing his Toyota 4-Runner out of the parking spot only he didn't put it in reverse, he put it in drive. The driver had been leaving the office after making an appointment. I myself would probably look for another doctor at that point.

And where in the world is Patrick McDermott, Olivia Newton-John's boyfriend of nine years?

Enjoy your day,

paul

Mei Sheng, at the San Diego zoo, celebrates her birthday on August 19. Happy Birthday to her. That is frosting on her cheek, not blush. Posted by Picasa

This panda, born on July, 9, at Washington's Smithsonian National Zoo weighs 4.2 lbs and is 17in long. The previous pics were of the twin pandas born in China and they were born on August 6 Posted by Picasa

And the baby starts to kind of look like an actual panda bear. Posted by Picasa

Here's another pic of one of the cubs born to 18 year old Xue Xue Posted by Picasa

Xue Xue, the giant panda in Northwest China gave birth to twin cubs on August 9. I had no idea that panda cubs were born so small, one could fit it in the hand. How adorable. It almost looks like a tiny pink alien. Posted by Picasa

Wednesday, August 24, 2005

A deliciously cool day here in Western, NY. According to the weatherman though the humidity is supposed to come back. It doesn't matter because August is on it's way out and September will soon be here with fall not too far behind.

Jaw dropper of the day: Talk about having a driver's license from a cracker jack box. An 86-year old woman in Minnesota has been ticketed for reckless driving. Pauline Lillian Meyerhoff of Goodview, Minn, decided to drive down a busy, crowded street on Sunday afternoon. The problem: She drove right through a parade. Driving her red cadillac (surprise, surprise, why do so many elderly people want to drive Cadillacs?) she turned down the town's main drag and almost plowed down adults, children and a gymnastics team. And instead of stopping or at least slowing down, Meyerhoff sped up (now that's a GREAT idea) and got up to speeds of between 35 and 50 according to the police chief. Fortunately not long after she arrived at her home, a policeman also arrived and ticketed her. The police chief explained that Meyerhoff was very upset at being ticketed when the law wasn't enforced to keep people out of the street while she's trying to drive on it. I think it's time to start calling a cab.

Enjoy your day,

paul

Tuesday, August 23, 2005

Religious 'Right?' Talk about saying stupid things.....Pat Robertson is probably not having a good morning after saying the following about Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez: "We have the ability to take him out, and I think the time has come that we exercise that ability." He continued, "You know I don't know about this doctrine of assassination, but if he thinks we're trying to assassinate him, I think we really ought to go ahead and do it." Robertson is no stranger to controversial statements. In 2003, he said that feminism encourages women to "kill their children, practice witchcraft, destroy capitalism and become lesbians." Why don't we just kill anyone who doesn't agree with us. I'm sure Jesus walked around preaching that same thing, "I don't like what that tax collector stands for, let's take him out. Who's with me? Peter? John?"

A California Supreme Court has ruled that same sex couples have the same rights as heterosexual couples when the two of them break up. They must provide for the child. The judge ruled that being a legal parent "brings with it the benefits as well as the responsibilities." One attorney of Liberty Counsel said, "That policy establishes that moms and dads as a unit are irrelevant when it comes to raising children." What?!!??? It doesn't say that at all. Maybe he's the one who's irrelevant.

Ok, enough ranting for the day. Enjoy yours,

paul

Monday, August 22, 2005

The #1 movie over the weekend was the hilarious The 40-Year Old Virgin. This is a funny movie and that's thanks mostly to Steve Carell who carries the film and shows he is a comedy force to be reckoned with. I'd say get this guy his own show but he already has one on NBC called The Office (the American version).

Put those lesbian rumors about Marcia Cross to rest....for now anyway. She's engaged to be married to stockbroker Tom Mahoney. Cross played the deliciously evil Kimberly Shaw on Melrose Place and plays the quintessentially uptight suburban housewife Bree Van De Kamp on Desperate Housewives.

Jaw dropper of the day: Has your child lost his/her doudou? Doudou is colloquial French and means anything that is a security blanket. A woman in France has a service where parents can register their children's most precious toys or security blankets. She sells a kit with a label that can be sewn onto the toy/blanket etc... The label has a toll free hotline (it goes to her home) and a code that identifies the item and who it belongs to. But I thought that young children were selfish and didn't want to share. Suppose an item is lost and the child doesn't want to return it. Hmmm, I guess it belongs to the new owner. Check out her website at www.sosdoudou.com Alrighty then.

Enjoy your day,

paul

Saturday, August 20, 2005

Hello,

It's a glorious Saturday and it feels good to be alive. Enjoy the day, do something different and tell someone you love them. Oh, no I sound like a Hallmark card, ugh!

Ok, I'm tired of hearing reporters call Dennis Rader the so-called BTK killer. The police caught him, he admitted to the killings, he IS the BTK killer. Enough said.

Jaw dropper of the day: In Richmond, California, at least six officers were caught on a security camera helping themselves to drinks in a closed Mrs. Fields store. The police were at the Hilltop Mall after a security guard caught two burglars who were trying to open a gate to a jewelry store. The police searched for the burglars then poured themselves some beverages from the cookie store. The management caught the footage on the tape from the security camera. A lawyer representing the officers said, "A couple of them were (dehydrated) to the point of desperation."

Enjoy your day,

paul

Friday, August 19, 2005


Check out this meteor from the Leonid meteor shower in Nov. 2000. I found this rummaging through some old pics and thought it was really cool.  Posted by Picasa

Remember this classic moment? Posted by Picasa

Thursday, August 18, 2005

Hello, President Bush? Hello, yes, it's me Cindy Sheehan. I'm calling you from your front gate. I know you're on vacation and quite busy with golfing, barbecuing, and bike riding (on the occasions you can actually stay on the bike). Oh, yes, that was a bit rude but it is true. What? Oh, yes, I know the continuous playing of Holiday by Green Day and System Of A Down's B.Y.O.B. is getting quite annoying. Your neighbors did mow down our crosses. Just what kind of neighbors do you have living here? Anyway, look Mr. President, I'd really like to talk to you, just for a few minutes, about the death of my son and almost 2,000 others who have died in Iraq. Many, many of them were quite young or had families. I know you think things are going very well even though more soldiers are dying every day and the insurgents are becoming more clever in their violence, well we disagree on that point and I'm not the only one either. Ok, wait, Mr. President, don't you want one of your last acts as President, before you become a lame duck, to be one of goodwill? I mean let's face it you've had a lot of bad things during your presidency: cutting taxes during a war, letting Osama Bin Laden escape at Tora Bora, the ousting of Colin Powell, Margaret Spellings, Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo Bay, appointing John Bolton to the UN.....oh, I'm sorry I got carried away. You have had some good things such as catching Saddam Hussein, bringing the country together after 9/11 (even if it was short lived), John Roberts as a US Supreme Court Justice looks promising. Many of your speeches and coining of new words has no doubt provided many hours of derision. And your facial expressions during the first Presidential debate with John Kerry were priceless. So what do you say President Bush? Won't you just take a few minutes out of your, I'm sure much deserved vacation, just to speak with me? Ok, Mr. Bush, I'll let you go now. I'll be right out here waiting and there's some Texas barbecued chicken wings for you too. Goodbye. Update: Sheehan's mother had a stroke and Cindy is leaving the ranch but she plans on being back as soon as possible.

My Oscar video pick of the week is a 1937 film that tells the story of a spoiled brat, who thinks he is entitled to everything he wants, who falls overboard while on a ship with his father. The film, Captains Courageous, is adapted from Rudyard Kipling's book and is one of the best adaptations I've ever seen. It stars Spencer Tracy as fisherman Manuel who saves Harvey, the young spoiled rich kid. This kid makes the Problem Child boy look like Mother Teresa. Most of the movie is spent out on the sea with Harvey learning what real life is like and Manuel and Harvey are soon bonding as a father and son would . One of the best scenes in the film is when Harvey tells Manuel he wants to stay with him. Another really good one is when Harvey is in the church praying to God that he wants to be with Manuel as Harvey's father listens in the back. Harvey's father, by the way, is played by Melvyn Douglas. Tracy won a much deserved Oscar, his first of two, for this film. He must have been one of the best actors of his time, his performance in the film is moving. In fact all of the acting is superb and the film is saved from melodrama and being sappy thanks to the actors. A 17-year old Mickey Rooney plays the son of the captain in the film. Check out this movie and revel in how movies used to be made.

Enjoy your day,

paul

Wednesday, August 17, 2005

Who says the no-fly list doesn't work? We're keeping those pesky infants who threaten the security of our country off of our planes. I can't make this stuff up. Several infants have been denied boarding on airplanes because their names have turned up on the no-fly list. Read about it yourself by checking out this link.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,165778,00.html

The weather is simply wonderful, no longer hot and humid. Ahhhhhhhhh.....enjoy.

peace,

paul

Here is the American flag made from 140 Jeep vehicles. The National Anthem Project is making an effort to re-teach Americans the words to the Star-Spangled Banner, only two out of 3 Americans know the words (I confess I'm #3). Jeep is sponsoring the effort and this flag kicked things off. It was done in Mount Pocono, Pa. The flag measured 73 ft wide and 191 ft long. Posted by Picasa

Monday, August 15, 2005

Thank heavens the humidity has broken. It's nice and cool today but I've a feeling we haven't seen the last of that oppressive heat.

Thank you to the American public for NOT making The Dukes of Hazzard the #1 movie over the weekend. I can't imagine going to this movie and enjoying it. Why, oh, why can't Hollywood come up with original movies? Is there such a dearth of new ideas?

And in the, "I wish I could do that" department: A Douglas County judge in Nebraska has been publicly reprimanded for his rudeness while presiding over a case. Judge John Huber made one litigant cry after the case had been resolved. "Stop it. Grow up. That doesn't make me feel bad for you in any way," he told the litigant. He was also snide and impatient. He is working on correcting this but can I just say, how much fun that would be. To just tell some people to just grow up, get a life, move on already.

That's it for now.

Well enjoy your day,

paul

Sunday, August 14, 2005

Another Sunday and the start of another week. Here's a question for you: Does the week start on Sunday or Monday? Interesting........

I have an additional comment for the film Heights, which I went to see yesterday. The best line in the movie came from a character at a party discussing the casting of the three witches in Macbeth. The women of choice: Laura Bush, Lynn Cheney and Martha Stewart. Can you imagine? I wonder if people would line up to see it.

There are a couple of songs out right now that I'm really enjoying. Collective Soul has a song called Better Now and it's quite happy and bouncy. I have to crank it up whenever it comes on. Another song I'm really enjoying is a Christian song called If We Are The Body by a group called Casting Crowns. I really like that name and the song is an upbeat song. Not the sort of Christian song many people may be used to.

That's all I feel like writing today. Enjoy your Sunday.

peace,

paul

Check out this catfish which was caught in the River Ebro near Barcelona. The female catfish was caught on July 6, 2005, and weighed in at 7ft 7in, the largest freshwater to be caught by a British angler. I wonder if they'll have leftovers. Posted by Picasa
Went to see the movie Heights which stars Glenn Close and I was very disappointed in the film. It's not even original; it's adapted from a play. And despite being a Merchant/Ivory production it isn't up to par with many of their other films. It's not for lack of good performances, Glenn Close does not disappoint. I was thinking at the beginning of the film that this may be the role that wins her the Oscar and despite the fact that she gives it her all, I would like to see her win for something meatier and more commercial. This is an art film through and through and probably won't be released in the multiplexes. The film also stars James Marsden as a gay man. Marsden, of Xmen fame (he played Cyclops, the one with the cool visor on his eyes) isn't playing his first gay role. Marsden is married and has a child but I'm wondering what draws him to the role of the conflicted gay man. The story is this: A man is about to get married and an affair that he had with a famous photographer catches up with him. Other characters are thrown in for good effect and they ultimately end up converging with each other. It's a plot that is hackneyed and some good performers are wasted.

Jaw dropper of the day: Don't read this if you just ate. A Japanese man is the dumpling king. He downed 83 dumplings in just 8 mins in Hong Kong's dumpling eating contest. Why people enjoy entering these contests and downing food so fast in so little time is beyond me. I thought food was meant to enjoy and savor not cram down your throat as fast as possible. Ugh!!!!!!

Enjoy your night,

paul

Friday, August 12, 2005

It's finally Friday, thank heavens. And speaking of heaven, I just want to make one additional comment about yesterday's entry on evolution. I believe in God and I believe in Darwin's evolution theory. I don't think that's a contradiction at all.

My Oscar video pick of the week is not an original movie (big surprise). Stalag 17, based on the play of the same name, a 1953 movie tells the story of a group of Americans being held prisoner during WWII. I read the play years and years ago while I was in college but had never seen the movie. It stars William Holden (who won the Actor Oscar) and a 27 year old Peter Graves. The behavior of Holden's character causes the other men in the bunker to think that he is passing secret information to the Germans. The confrontation at the end when the traitor is exposed is one of those classic "yes" movie moments. That's when the viewer is watching the movie just waiting for the antagonist to get their comeuppance. When it finally comes the viewer ends up yelling out "yes!"

Cindy Sheehan, whose son died in Iraq in April of last year, has been camped out at President Bush's ranch for about a week now. The president is on vacation for five weeks but he cannot be bothered to go out and talk with one of the citizens of his country. How very sad!!!! I'm so glad other military families have joined her as it's about time Bush became accountable for something. Don't even get me started on Karl Rove. The question isn't whether Rove committed a crime but whether he acted inappropriately and the question is yes. Anyone else at any other job would have been fired already.

Here's a "stupid" jaw dropper: Three teens in Missouri sold themselves on Ebay. The teens, who start college soon, wanted some extra money and "sold" themselves to do tedious tasks for a week. The final price tag: $246.50 Haha, how pathetic. One teen said that he wouldn't do it again. Yeah, get a real job.

I'm very disappointed in the new cast of Survivor. Yes, I truly enjoy watching this show, however, out of 16 new cast members, only three are over the age of 40. Only one is over the age of 50. Talk about ageism. I quite enjoy seeing middle aged people, sometimes even more than younger people. They have more life experience, are wiser, more prepared and a lot of the men are much sexier.

Enjoy your day,

paul

Thursday, August 11, 2005

My spouse thought it was going to be cooler today; it is, a few degrees anyway. Actually the humidity is not as oppressive today as it has been.

There's a fascinating article in this week's Time magazine on the debate between evolution and intelligent design. No matter which one you believe in, I highly recommend it be read. My favorite quote within the article comes from Steven Pinker, Psychology Professor at Harvard University. He says, "morality comes from a commitment to treat others as we wish to be treated which follows the realization that none of us is the sole occupant of the universe." According to the book of Genesis, God made the universe in 7 days. But, is that to be taken literally and were those actual 24 hour days as we know them today? Francis Collins, the Director of National Human Genome Research Institute views the first 2 chapters as a "poem of how God created the world."

It's an epidemic!!!!!! Peter Jennings died of lung cancer, Barbara Bel Geddes (Miss Ellie) died of the disease and now Dana Reeve (yes, Superman's widow) has the disease. What is going on here? Hello people..........this should be everyone's wake up call to take better care of themselves.

Another ridiculous item are all of the jurors from the Michael Jackson trial coming forward and saying that they think Jacko is guilty. Then why the hell didn't you convict him? Three jurors have come forward so far yet none of them voted guilty. It's a little late now, don't you think?

Ok, I've ranted enough. Enjoy your day,

paul

Wednesday, August 10, 2005

Thankfully the Discovery space shuttle landed safely, in California. Bad weather kept it out of Florida. They strap it to a plane and will fly it back to Florida, I think it would be cool to see that.

Natalee Holloway's mother, Beth Holloway Twitty, has had a harrassment complaint filed against her. She went to Deepak Kalpoe's place of business and grilled him with questions for about 90mins. Two months later and still no sign of the teenager. Twitty is right about one thing, the whole investigation has the air of ineptitude floating around it.

Jaw dropper of the day: Talk about forgetting something important. Stop me if you've heard this one: A Macedonian man, travelling with his wife and 4-year-old daughter, stops at a service station, drives off and then remembers he forgot his wife.....SIX HOURS LATER. The family was travelling from Pesaro back to their home in Germany. When police finally traced the man he was in Milan, over 200 miles north of Pesaro. His wife had gotten out of the car to use the bathroom and the man had not noticed, especially since she usually sat in the backseat with their daughter. I guess the two of them really don't talk a lot, they must really enjoy the silence in their relationship. Six hours is a long time to go without saying SOMETHING and realizing your wife is not responding to you. Talk to your loved one today.

Enjoy your day,

paul

Monday, August 08, 2005

The Evangelical Lutheran church has their assembly in Florida starting today. The big vote will be on whether or not to ordain gays/lesbians. How wonderful it is to be in a denomination where that is not even an issue.

Peter Jennings has died of lung cancer at the age of 67. A Toronto native, Jennings had his own show at the age of 9. The announcement that he had lung cancer had only come back in April. Behind Tom Brokaw, Jennings was my 2nd favorite evening anchor.

Jaw dropper of the day: According to Los Angeles city officials the sign of a strip club is not against the law, however, Toys R Us has been contacted and they will be looking into whether the name of the strip club violates the trademark of their store name. The strip club, called the Century Lounge, has a new sign out in front of the building that says Vaginas R Us. Buoyed by the popularity of the Vagina Monologues, the owner, Howard White, says he is only advertising his business. I guess with a sign like that there's no question what his business is.

Enjoy your day,

paul

Sunday, August 07, 2005

A wonderfully cool Sunday, we'd better enjoy it while we can because the heat is supposed to come back tomorrow, oy vey (I'm a Jewish wannabe).

I'm so tired of commercials playing songs that I like. There's an suv commercial out that has the song Dust In The Wind playing over the commercial. That's a classic and I don't like hearing it cheapened by a car commercial. There's a newer song that was played on HBO earlier this year. The song is called Run by a group called Snow Patrol. I know, you may not know who the hell I'm talking about, however, I like the song and they played it while previews of the HBO movie Empire Falls played. Then they played the same song during previews of David E. Kelley's tv show The Law Firm. Whatever happened to original jingles? I mean, come on, Dr. Pepper's "Be A Pepper," Nair's "We Wear Short Shorts," and even McDonalds's annoying "Ba Da Bop Bop Ba, I'm Lovin' It" jingle. These are original and don't resort to playing good radio songs to death.

Was Jimi Hendrix gay? No, but according to a new book, Room Full Of Mirrors by Charles R. Cross, Hendrix told officers he was in love with one of the mates in his unit and that he had also become addicted to masturbating. Instead of being released due to an injury, as had been reported, he was released because of homosexual tendencies. I guess this was before all of the drugs killed his brain cells.

Enjoy your day,

paul

Saturday, August 06, 2005

I'm so proud to be a part of Metropolitan Community Churches. The denomination believes in being open to everyone. It's so diverse and accepting and with churches in over 20 different countries it's global as well. Below is the MCC statement of vision. This is the denomination I belong to.

MCC Statement of Vision
Metropolitan Community Churches are on a bold mission to transform hearts, lives, and history. We are a movement that faithfully proclaims God’s inclusive love for all people and proudly bears witness to the holy integration of spirituality and sexuality.
Just as Jesus did, we are called to:
Do justice, show kindness, and live humbly with God. (Micah 6:8)
Explore life’s questions and answers.
Raise our voices in sacred defiance against religious (and political or systemic) exclusion.
Reach out to those with no hope.
Lift up new generations of remarkable, far-reaching spiritual activists.
MCC Statement of Purpose
As God’s liberated people, we boldly . . .
Reclaim our Holy Identity.
At MCC, we believe that even in our humanness, we are holy. We are liberated from other people’s definitions of who we are. We are made both body and spirit. We believe that our sexuality is a holy gift from God so we no longer distance our bodies from our experience with God. We are a people who proudly participate in the communion of body and spirit.
Advance our call to Social Justice and Action.
At MCC, we believe that Jesus led the way in acts of compassion and acts of justice. Because we have been a people in the margins of society, we understand fully the grace that God has extended to us. We seek to distance ourselves from exclusion and draw ourselves closer to including all those who are marginalized in any way. We stand boldly with those who resist the structures of exclusion, as Jesus did, and work to insure freedom for all people. In the margins, we are blessed.
Tell the story of God’s Transforming Grace.
At MCC, we come as we are to Christ and are changed by what we find. We experience a God with open arms, inviting all to take the sacred journey of faith and transformation. We are growing in our faith and claim that our place in society has magnified our place in God’s family. We are one of the many voices of God that, until now, has been lost in the margins!
Nurture the value of Community
At MCC, we believe our ultimate ministry is in the world. We know that in order to prepare ourselves for radical service that changes lives, we must equip ourselves and others in the safety of a supportive community. We strive to live out a message that rejects the idea that any are excluded from the family of God.
Build bridges that Liberate and Unite
At MCC, we have experienced the soul destruction that comes from hate filled rhetoric. In restoring our souls, we have come to find that our voices will speak the liberation that comes through peace, compassion, love, respect and grace. As followers of Jesus, we believe in everyone’s holy privilege to work out their own salvation. While we are a Christian church who follows Jesus, we respect those of other faith traditions and work together with them to free all those who are oppressed by hate, disregard and violence.
MCC Statement of Direction
MCC has staked its claim. As one of the world’s emerging churches, we are proclaiming a spirituality that is liberating and sufficiently profound to address the issues of our chaotic and complicated world. We live out our belief that in the margins we are blessed and we are offering multiple ways for people to access our message of liberation and inclusion. Through church planting, church revitalization, alliances, the internet, and our work in acts of compassion and justice, we will expand our reach substantially over the next few years. MCC will become a name known to an increasing number of people as a place where all are welcomed and our service to those who are excluded is a primary calling. We will be leaders in the world about the union of spirituality and sexuality by articulating our message and spreading it effectively.
MCC Statement of Core Values
Inclusion
Love is our greatest moral value and resisting exclusion is a primary focus of our ministry. We want to continue to be the conduits of a faith where everyone is included in the family of God, and where all parts of our being are welcomed at God’s table.
Community
Offering a safe and open community for people to worship, learn and grow in their faith is our deep desire. We are committed to equipping ourselves and each other to do the work that God has called us to do in the world.
Spiritual Transformation
Providing a message of liberation from the oppressive religious environment of our day or to those experiencing God for the first time is what guides our ministry. We believe that when people are invited to experience God through the life and ministry of Christ, lives will be transformed.
Social Action
Working to talk less and do more, we are committed to resisting the structures that oppress people and standing with to those who suffer under the weight of oppressive systems, being guided always by our commitment to Global Human Rights.


I finally saw the film 2001:A Space Odyssey and I have to say it left me nonplussed. The first 20-25mins is just a group of gorillas sitting around, frolicking, eating, fighting, communing and then a monolith appears and they don't know what to make of it. Cut to outer space and for the next 30-35 mins there are extended scenes of space or characters performing mundane activities while classical music plays over the scene.

When HAL is introduced, the film really takes off. Hal, of course, is the evil machine. Actually he's more like a computer, a brain, of the ship. Hal decides to take over the ship and kill everyone on board. I admit for the last half hour I had no idea what the hell was going on. Maybe I'm just not very cerebral but I was scratching my head. Visually the film is stunning and was obviously meant to see on a huge screen. If you like sci fi and if you like Stanley Kubrick then rent this movie.

Friday, August 05, 2005

I can't believe I have to work tonight. Usually I have Friday nights off, however, a girl on my team wanted off tonight to attend a wedding and I agreed to work for her. The benefit to me: She'll be working for me on Sunday night. Yippee!!!!

I wrote about Six Feet Under in yesterday's posting and I just wanted to add a few more comments. Thankfully the last few episodes will not feature Nate and Brenda as a couple. Personally I think that ship ran its course a long time ago. I think they did a really nice job turning around the relationship between David and Keith and I really wish they would do something positive with Ruth, the matriarch of the family. How whiny and negative she has become!!!! I think she needs an affair with a really hot, macho, masculine and hairy Italian. One who will lay with her for hours just talking and then give her a role in the hay she won't soon forget.

One more thought for today. I'm hoping the confirmation hearings for John Roberts go smoothly. Jim has said from the beginning that he has a good feeling about the Supreme Court nominee and I tend to agree with him about Roberts. Now comes word that he once helped a gay rights group overturn a ruling in Colorado that allowed gays to be excluded from housing and jobs. I'll bet the Christian Conservatives are loving that. If one reads a record of some of his most popular cases and rulings one would see that he's not a radically right as people may think.

Enjoy your day,

paul

Thursday, August 04, 2005

Yes, but is it still worth watching?: That's the question some people may be asking about the HBO program Six Feet Under. After five years the show remains arguably one of the biggest shows with characters that make one want to jump through the tv screen and start strangling. The characters make poor choices, whine, revel in self-pity and depression and complain, complain, complain. Hmmm....sounds like some people we may know in real life. Having said that, however, the show remains one of the most sharp and well written shows on tv. It can still find humor and sadness in even the most mundane situation and with only three new episodes (ever) left, the show seems to have taken a page from the "I Can't Believe They Did That" book. One of the main characters has been killed off. With the name printed on the screen (a sign that the character has expired) now the rest of the characters must deal with the loss and face their own inadequacies. Looking forward to seeing how this plays out? I sure am.

Oscar video pick of the week: My video pick of the week (Oscar of course) is a film from 1931 starring Helen Hayes and a very young Robert Young (Marcus Welby himself). Hayes stars as Madelon Claudet in the film The Sin of Madelon Claudet. It starts out as a young and vibrant Hayes running away with her lover and from there she experiences abandonment, has a child, goes to prison, loses her child, meets her child, faces life on the street, "loses" her child again, and finally comes face to face with her son again. At times it's a bit much seeing all of the misfortune face Madelon, however, Hayes (in her film debut) is radiant, even as an old and haggard woman who has lived a hard life. Hayes was only 31 when she film the movie and the makeup is wonderful as is her performance. She won the Actress Oscar (the 5th woman to do so) and the film moves along at a brisk pace.

Until next time,

paul

Wednesday, August 03, 2005

It's another hot one. It's going to be in the 90's today. Stay cool everyone.

Who says gays don't have more fun and aren't at the center of the social stratosphere? I don't say that and after reading this article, you can't either (nyah,nyah,nyah). Check it out.

NEW YORK, NY --Gays and lesbians who read the nation's top gay newspapers are more socially outgoing, travel more frequently and are more concerned about health and fitness than the general U.S. adult population. These generally held perceptions about the country's gays and lesbians are supported by statistical findings in a just-released reader survey conducted on behalf of the National Gay Newspaper Guild.
Harris Interactive conducted the Guild reader poll and posed the same questions to a statistical sample of the U.S. population. Further comparison of off-beat topics shows that compared to the general population, the gays and lesbians that were polled:
-- are twice as likely to own an iPod;
-- are half as likely to own a Chevrolet or Buick vehicle, but more than twice as likely to own a Honda;
-- are more likely to have rented a car in the past year; and
-- are three times more likely to have a personal trainer.
"The Guild's survey provides invaluable demographic information about a highly targeted cross-section of readers from the nation's leading gay and lesbian publications," said Todd Evans, CEO of Rivendell Media, the company that organized the Guild in 1982. "Over the past 20 years of doing this report, our survey has become a benchmark resource for insight into our community."
The National Gay Newspaper Guild first surveyed its readers in 1984 to provide a reader profile to prospective advertisers. The poll is noted as one of the first statistically reliable demographic marketing studies of the LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) market. Conducted every four years since 1984, the Guild survey has become one of the premier U.S. sources for LGBT marketing data.
"The idea for a survey began as an advertising sales tool for member newspapers, but it has evolved to become a notable statistical profile of gays and lesbians as a target consumer market," said Evans.
Technophiles
In addition to an affinity for the iPod (17% gays, lesbians vs. 8% general population), gay and lesbian respondents in the guild survey also proved to be heavily into gadgets and the latest technology.
Those that have Internet access at home are more likely than the average U.S. adult to have broadband (66% vs. 57%) instead of a dial-up service with twice as many LGBT high-speed surfers opting for Wi-Fi access at home (25% vs. 12%). Guild readers were almost twice as likely to own a PDA or Personal Digital Assistant (25% vs. 13%) or own a wireless e-mail device such as a Blackberry (7% vs. 4%).
Gay and lesbian wireless customers are more likely to have added features on their cell phone such as a camera (25% vs. 20%) or services such as text messaging (75% vs. 66%) and e-mail (39% vs. 32%).
Readers are just as likely as the average U.S. adult to own a home computer (94% vs. 95%); however, it's more likely that the computer of choice is a laptop (46% vs. 29%). While IBM compatible computer systems were most popular among both sample sets (83% vs. 84%), Guild readers are three times more likely to own a MacIntosh (15% vs. 5%).
Guild readers also are more likely to use online travel reservations sites than other U.S. adults with airline Web sites being favored by a majority of both groups (70% vs. 54%).
Healthy, Wealthy and Wise
The surveyed gays and lesbians had more than twice as many college degrees as the average U.S. adult (67% vs. 25%) with the graduating class earning more than three times as many graduate degrees (28% vs. 8%).
The gay and lesbian sample was three times as likely to belong to a health club (51% vs. 17%), with gym members three times more likely to have a personal trainer (13% vs. 4%). They also are more than twice as likely to get massages (36% vs. 14%).
Of those surveyed, the Guild readers were more likely to consume champagne (30% vs. 12%) and imported wine (43% vs. 19%) but also more likely to consumer domestic beer (76% vs. 72%). Also, readers were more likely to be brand-loyal consumers (52% vs. 38%).
Ford was an equally popular car maker among both groups (14% vs. 19%). Hondas were more than twice as popular among gays and lesbian car owners (11% vs. 5%) while there was a marked disagreement in Chevrolets (7% vs. 18%) and Buicks (1% vs. 4%).
Readers tended to have higher personal and household incomes and higher household net worth than the average U.S. adult. They were more than two times as likely to have an individual income over $50,000 (43% vs. 21%) and almost two times as likely to have a net worth over $500,000 (26% vs. 14%).
Social Creatures and World Travelers
Gay and lesbians in the poll tend to host parties at home with a clear preference for dinner parties (12% vs. 5%) and cocktail parties (10% vs. 2%) over cook-outs (7% vs. 8%).
When it comes to dining out, the gay and lesbian in the survey were half as likely to have dined out only one to five times in the past 30 days (16% vs. 37%), while twice as likely to have dined out more than 10 times (48% vs. 25%).
Guild readers also are more than three times as likely to have been to a night club (43% vs. 14%) and more than six times as likely to have been to a live theatre performance (15% vs. 2%) or museum/art gallery (13% vs. 2%) two or more times per month in the past year.
Nearly nine in ten surveyed gays and lesbians have traveled within the United Sates in the past year compared to seven in ten U.S. adults (87% vs. 70%). Readers were almost twice as like to have taken a trip outside the United States in the past three years (58% vs. 28%). Guild readers also took more than twice as many flights for personal travel in the past years (average 2.9 vs. 1.3 trips). They also were more likely to have rented a car in the past year for personal or business use (mean of 2.7 vs. 1.1 rentals).
The National Gay Newspaper Guild (
www.nationalgaynewspaperguild.com) represents the top LGBT local newspapers in the nation and has a member circulation larger than the leading national LGBT magazines combined. Member publications include Bay Area Reporter, San Francisco; Bay Windows, Boston; Between the Lines, Detroit; Dallas Voice, Dallas; Frontiers, Los Angeles; Gay & Lesbian Times, San Diego; Houston Voice, Houston; New York Blade, New York; Philadelphia Gay News, Philadelphia: Southern Voice, Atlanta: Washington Blade, Washington, D.C.: The Weekly News, Miami; and Windy City Times, Chicago.
Methodology:
The 2005 NGNG Readership Survey was conducted online by Harris Interactive within the United States between October 10, 2004 and March 21, 2005. The interviewing was administered to nationwide samples of 3,801 adults (aged 18 and over) who are readers of a NGNG publication and a separate general sample of 2,731 U.S. adults (aged 18 and over).


The thought of the day: It's not premarital sex if you have no intention of getting married.

Monday, August 01, 2005

It's hard to believe it's August 1. Where does the time go to? We had a nice day yesterday at Jones Pond, a gay campground about 20 miles from where we live. Jim performed a wedding for two of the guys who have a trailer there. It was a nice ceremony and Jim used some of his shtick which included verbal participation from the audience. It was my first time there and everyone was really nice and the campground itself was pretty, relaxing, and clean. It is a clothing optional (in certain areas) camp and maybe one day I'll be comfortable enough with my own body to walk around au naturel.

Jaw dropper of the day: I wrote a couple of months ago on a procedure hospitals are using to eat away bacteria and infectious parts of the body; the use of maggots is helping get rid of infection in some cases. A woman in Bay City, Michigan, diagnosed with diabetes lost her left leg because of the disease and she also has wounds that develop on her right foot as a result of putting pressure on it. On July 6, doctors put maggots on the foot of Barbara Enser, each maggot about 2 millimeters in size. Then the wound was covered with foam, tape, and a gauze bandage. Two days later, on July 8, the maggots had swollen to about 4 millimeters and were eating away at the infection. The maggots apparently only eat infected tissue and leave healthy skin alone. They also leave an enzyme on the skin that promotes healing. When the bandages were removed on July 10, the swelling in the foot was gone, where there had been infected tissue now had healthy tissue and the maggots were removed by the use of tweezers. The skin is then rinsed with a saline solution and any remaining dead skin is cut away. How funky indeed!!!! As long as it works, but hey, no squirming.

Enjoy your day,

paul