Check out this pic of a 646 pound catfish that was caught in Northern Thailand in the Mekong River. It holds the record of the largest freshwater fish. Government officials and environmentalists tried negotiating for the fish's release but the male died and was of course eaten. Now that would have fed an army and then some.

War of the Worlds opened yesterday and personally I think Brooke Shields was right. Tom Cruise should stick to saving the world from aliens and leave the psycho babble to people who know what they are talking about. I'm beginning to wonder if Cruise is on drugs. And of course now comes news that his relationship with Katie Holmes is a contract. He also had a contract with Nicole Kidman and Penelope Cruz and once he's done with the women, the contract is done too. While he's with them, however, they get money and boosts in their careers (after Batman Begins Katie Holmes will need all the help she can get). This just fuels the speculation even more that Tom Cruise leads an alternative lifestyle (is he gay or isn't he?). Lest you think, 'But he has children' the children he has with Nicole Kidman are adopted. Hmmmmmmm

Enjoy your day,

paul

We're having another heatwave here in Western, NY, and it's not pleasant. Hot is one thing, hot and humid is something entirely different. The birds don't seem to mind the heat. They just keep eating and eating. I saw a brown headed cowbird (Jim's least favorite kind of bird) feeding another cowbird (I'm guessing her baby although he looked almost as big as she did). She would peck the seeds on the ground and then literally put the food right in his mouth. It was kind of cute in a twisted sort of way.

My video pick of last week is a 1949 film called All The King's Men. It tells the story of Willie Stark (loosely based on Huey P. Long, one time governor of Louisiana). It stars Broderick Crawford who plays Stark and appeals to the common man and becomes a popular political figure. As his popularity soars he becomes more controlling over others as he loses control of his own life. He even has his right hand man keep a little black book detailing all of the dirt on just about everyone in town. Mercedes McCambridge (who was big in radio) stars in her first film role as the manipulating assistant. McCambridge lights up the screen no matter what scene she's in and I found myself focusing on her even when she wasn't the main attraction in the scene. McCambridge (along with Crawford and the film) won an Oscar and almost 25 years after that film another generation was exposed to McCambridge's talent. In 1973 McCambridge lent her "demonic" voice to the film The Exorcist. That wasn't Linda Blair you heard, it was McCambridge giving us the shivers. And as with all classics, Hollywood is seeing the need to remake the film. Filming is currently underway to remake All The King's Men and will star Jude Law, Kate Winslet, Mark Ruffalo, Sean Penn and Anthony Hopkins. Having said that, the original Men was based on the Robert Penn Warren novel of the same name.

Jaw dropper of the day: A woman who was in a car crash in Tokyo was actually dead before the crash. On Sunday, a man driving with his son hit a concrete wall, rebounded and then hit the lane divider. The three year old son was thrown from the front passenger seat and both father and son were killed when they were hit by oncoming traffic. The woman, who was the wife and mother of the other two, was found near the crash but was already in a state of rigor mortis. She is believed to have died one or two days before the crash. Nothing like riding around with your dead mother/wife in the car.

Enjoy your day,

paul

Hello,

I'm back from a weekend of coasters at Six Flags Great Adventure in NJ. Had a lot of fun and rode many of the coasters (except for the really big one). I did find out why that coaster was closed. During a test run there was a malfunction (sparks flew out at one point and the car landed with a thud at one point during the run. No one was on the coaster at the time but who knows how long it will be closed. I didn't know there is a similar coaster at Cedar Point in Ohio and it had similar problems when it first opened two years ago. One thing I was appalled by was the fact that all these kids just pushed their way to the front of the lines. It was so annoying and I just felt like smacking them upside the head. Of course there were signs that said line cutters will be ejected from the park and if I wouldn't have gotten in trouble, I would have ejected them myself.

Well I'm tired and hot and cranky. I slept for only two hours yesterday. I got back into Rochester at 2:30 and then had to work last night. More tomorrow and jaw dropper will be back.

By the way, Tom Cruise is an idiot!!!!!!!! Did anyone see Matt Lauer's interview with him on Friday?

Enjoy your day,

paul

I hope everyone had a wonderful first day of summer. The first full day of summer is overcast and rain is threatening to pour out from the sky.

It appears that Saddam Hussein, the butcher of Baghdad, is a nice guy who gives out cigars and really likes Doritos. So say the guards who have watched over him during his incarceration. I really needed to know that. Poor Saddam, he gets caught in his skivvies and is really just a sweetheart. Is there any real news?

Jawdropper of the day: Another unique item on sale on Ebay. Pieces of toast bearing the image of Michael Jackson. These pieces of toast (several of which are fetching upwards of $300) all popped out of their toasters either right before or during the reading of Michael Jackson's not guilty verdict. The sad part of this story is that people will actually buy these pieces of toast and some may even eat them.

Enjoy your day,

paul

The rain is finally gone and the sun is back but the humidity and heat has not returned with the sun. I never tire of watching the birds at the feeder. They seem to be so busy these days, even more so than winter when food was scarce.

Poor Tom Cruise, he just can't get a break. He was in London for a premiere of War Of The Worlds when a man, posing as a journalist, put a microphone in Cruise's face as if he was going to interview the star. Then the microphone squirted water in Cruise's face and Cruise called the guy onto the carpet (the red one they were standing on, it was a premiere). He called the guy a jerk and said he was giving the guy an interview and he goes and does something nasty. The guy was part of a television crew filming a sketch for a comedy show for Channel 4, a publicly owned station. The last time that happened, to Sharon Osbourne, she took a bucket of water and dumped it on the interviewer.

One more note today: Many of you may know that Jennifer Wilbanks, the runaway bride, will be giving her interview to Katie Couric tomorrow night. New reports have come in now saying that while in Las Vegas Wilbanks was seen playing blackjack. She even went so far as to ask people at the blackjack table for money. She allegedly said she would soon have lots of money. Anyone thinking that Wilbanks is not getting paid for this interview, think again. In order to secure the rights to the story, NBC has paid her to give the interview and get the rights. MMMMMM I wonder if her husband was in on this.

That's all for today.

paul

Here's the jaw dropper of the day: A six legged puppy with two (yes, two) penises was found outside of a Chinese temple in Kuala Lumpur. The members of the temple are taking care of the puppy and consider him a good omen. They have named him Ong Fatt (Lucky One). The six legs are visible, unfortunately, it's not a good shot of the two penises. Now that's funky!!!! 

Another gray and dreary day, a good one for going back to bed for an hour or two.

Is it just me or does anyone else NOT care about TomKat (ooooh, I'm Tom Cruise, I can propose to my sweetheart on top of the Eiffel Tower). I still think he's an idiot for making those comments about Brooke Shields. What does he know about post partum depression anyway?

Jaw dropper of the day: Southern Baptists in Nashville, Tennessee, are being told to take their children out of public schools that are tolerant of homosexuality. Who is telling them to do this? The churches of course. About 85% of Southern Baptists send their children to public schools or "godless" public schools which they are being deemed by the church. Many can't afford to send their children to private schools or home school them. It just goes to show you that the churches are getting scarier and scarier, telling people how to vote, where to send their children, how to live their lives. The church is supposed to be a spiritual place and not a place where one goes to have the pastor tell them how to make daily decisions. I've got nothing against Southern baptists, however, I do have something against ignorance.

Wherever you are today, enjoy.

paul

Jaw dropper of the day: Still don't think that innocent people are executed? Well Ting Xingshan, of Beijing, was executed in 1989 for butchering a woman. An 18 year old woman disappeared in 1987 and around the same time police found pieces of a woman that had sliced in a professional manner. Xingshan was a butcher by trade and police found out, through rumors, that Xingshan frequented a hotel where the 18 year old worked. He was arrested and sentenced to death and killed by gunshot. He claimed his innocence right up until the very end. Well, lo and behold, the 18 year old, Shi Xiaorong was later found to be serving a prison sentence for selling drugs. Not only that but her husband was serving as well. That's not the first time an innocent in Beijing has been wrongfully convicted. In April, a man was released for killing his wife. He had served 11 years of 15 when the wife turned up alive with another man. Scandalous!!!! Hey, if it can happen in Beijing, what's to say it can't happen in America?

Hello, it's finally the weekend!!!!!!! Thank God and hallelujah.

Friday rant: I am sick, sick, sick of hearing the right wingers say that the detainees at Guantanamo Bay are not being mistreated and that they are not entitled to the Geneva Convention rights. Most, if not all, of them have never even been charged with anything but pose a "threat" to our nation's security. Only a handful of them have caused any trouble after being released. I applaud Sen. Dick Durbin for the comments he made regarding Guantanamo Bay. "If I read this to you and did not tell you that it was an FBI agent describing what Americans had done to prisoners in their control, you would most certainly believe this must have been done by Nazis, Soviets in their gulags, or some mad regime — Pol Pot or others — that had no concern for human beings," That is the quote that all of the right wingers are focusing on and I have to tell you he is right. There is a great article in this week's Time magazine that details the torture of the 20th hijacker, the one who didn't make it onto one of the planes on 9/11. It talks about the abuse, physical, mental, and spiritual that these soldiers are employing. Either charge the detainees or let them go. For God's sake doesn't our country look bad enough already? And that is not un-American as the Bush administration would have people believe, that is standing up for doing what is right and just.

A bit gray and rainy today but at least it's cooled down. We had a bit of a hot spell there, whew!!!

Big surprise on Terry Schiavo's autopsy (NOT!!!!). Of course it showed that she died of dehydration due to her feeding tube being removed and that she was blind. The widely seen tape of Schiavo seeming to smile and follow her mother's voice is not what it seems. Those actions, smiling and moving the head are automatic responses and do not prove that she was aware of her surroundings. Also her brain had shrunk to half the size it should have been. Personally I think the parents should just let it go once and for all. One would think that after 15 years there would have been some sort of closure.

Jaw dropper of the day: If you happen to move to Frankfurt, Germany, and decide to work at Wal-Mart then feel free to flirt while you work. A court in Germany ruled that employees can flirt with other employees while working. The clause that banned "any kind of communication that could be interpreted as sexual" was found by the court to contradict German labor laws. Pretty soon the employees will be allowed to flirt with the customers as well. We here in America never do that (right!!!!).

Enjoy your day,

paul

I finally got the mowing done; well most of it anyway. I pooped out after doing about 90% of it. Oh well, tomorrow is another day. At least it's not as humid as it has been. Tonight it's supposed to be in the 50's, how nice (I mean that).

No jaw dropper today but I am sucking on a jawbreaker right now, a fire ball (mmmmmm). I do want to say this though, let's be careful driving out there. I'm not sure if it's the nice weather or if I'm just more attuned to the crazies but people drive like maniacs. Let's all be on the defense and don't be afraid to use your horn. That's what it's there for.

Have a great day,

paul

It's another warm day and gray to boot. How dreary!!!!! I wish it would cool down and be sunny so I can get out there and mow, damnit.

Jaw dropper of the day: Talk about minding your own business one day and then dying the next. A man in Lagos was relieving himself (#1, not #2) by the side of the road when a horned African cow knocked the man down and killed him. Efforts to revive him were not successful. The cow also injured several bystanders. The man, a bus driver, was taking a leak by his bus when the cow went mad. So what's the next logical thing to do? Arrest the cow!!!! Yes, that's right, the cow was arrested by the police and they were looking for the cow's owner to charge them with failing to keep the cow under control. No word on whether they will seek manslaughter charges against the cow (oh!!!!!!!).

Enjoy your day,

paul

It's been soooooo hot that I've just not wanted to do anything. I haven't even been outside to mow the lawn, which is getting quite long. Hopefully the cool off later this week will allow me to get out there and make it look pretty.

10 years ago, in 1995, a not guilty verdict was handed down in the OJ Simpson trial. Now 10 years later, another not guilty verdict was read in the Michael Jackson trial. Not guilty on all 10 counts, a clean sweep. Many people think that this case never should have gone to trial. I think that Michael Jackson was lucky, especially in this day and age of hysteria over sexual abuse. Despite the not guilty verdict, I cannot imagine Jackson going back to his normal life, whatever normal was for him.

I've been really bad about writing, it's just been so hot and oppressive. The humidity is the killer.

Wherever you are today, enjoy yourself and stay cool.

paul

It's another scorcher. Thank heavens for air conditioning!!!!!

We went to see Mr. & Mrs. Smith today, no not the pie makers, the movie. Starring Brangelina (Brad & Angelina) the film is very tongue in cheek with some funny moments. It also has more than its share of ridiculous moments. It did have a very serious underlying theme of what can happen to a marriage if people don't tend to it every day. The lies, deceit, bitterness and anger all build up and in the film two people have to try and literally kill each other before they realize what's really important. If you are in the mood for two hours of bang, bang and shoot them up then see this movie. If you'd rather have a more believable and deep thinking movie, skip this one. I will say this though, it was a very nice ending.

Jaw dropper of the day: Two cats in Tokyo almost lost "one" of their lives when they urinated on the wrong appliance. The owner of two cats had his kitchen and living room damaged by fire when his two cats urinated on his fax machine. The electrical printing mechanism was soaked after the cats were done doing their business. The fire was caused as a result of that. No harm to the cats but the owner did suffer smoke inhalation.

Enjoy your evening,

paul

One of the great actresses of our time has passed away. I was so upset that I didn't write yesterday. Anne Bancroft has passed on due to uterine cancer. I had a feeling something was wrong when she was cast in the movie Spanglish she had to drop out and the role went to Cloris Leachman. The reason was health problems and as it turns out they were quite serious. Although she didn't win an Oscar for her role as Mrs. Robinson, Bancroft is probably best known for that role in The Graduate. She was only 6 years older that Dustin Hoffman in that movie but she was clearly supposed to be much older. Her one and only Oscar came from playing Annie Sullivan in The Miracle Worker.

Jaw dropper of the day: How's this for talent? Sonya Thomas, nicknamed The Black Widow, is the champion in the popcorn eating contest. In a contest sponsored by MTV, Thomas ate 10 boxes of popcorn in 12 minutes. She was tied with Rich LeFevre but some kernels missed LeFevre's mouth. For her prize, Thomas got an MTV movie awards talent gift basket. The estimated worth is $10,000. Not only is she the fastest popcorn eater but she also won the lobster eating contest. Last August she ate 38 lobsters in just 12 minutes. She also won the bean contest eating 8.4 pounds of beans and pork in only 2 min and 47 seconds. Not to rest on her laurels she's also the record holder for the hard boiled eggs contest. Lest you think that Thomas is a big girl, her weight clocks in at 105 lbs. I personally cannot watch those kind of contests as I find them revolting. Anyone eating like that is not a pleasant sight. Food is meant to be enjoyed not wolfed.

Enjoy your day,

paul

It's gonna be another warm one today but we did have a wonderful thunderstorm late yesterday afternoon. I like a good thunderstorm. Yesterday the cottonwood was flying around everywhere. It was all over the ground too and looked a bit like snow. It was a little annoying as I had the car windows open and it kept flying in my car and flying around me. I kept waving my arms trying to keep it away from me. I must have looked like I was having a seizure.

Jaw dropper of the day: I've heard of some strange things to bring through customs but this sounds fishy.....An Australian woman arriving at Melbourne airport from Singapore caught the attention of customs officials when they heard "flipping" noises coming from her waist area. Officials discovered, upon closer inspection, that the woman had an apron made out of plastic water filled bags and they contained fish. Fifty-one fish, all alive and tropical, were discovered. So far she hasn't been charged and no word on what kind of fish they are but this woman must have been BIG. Another five fish were found at her home. Whatever happened to just going to the pet store?

Enjoy your day and stay cool,

paul

Here's a pic of some of those fish in the bags the woman from Melbourne had around her waist. There were 51 fish in bags all around her waist. She wore them like an apron. Anyone know what kind of fish these are? 

I just can't seem to get the hang of getting the links in there right. Here's the link for some "bathroom" reading.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20050604/ap_on_fe_st/taiwan_royal_flush

Well the weekend box office numbers are in and Cinderella Man only came in 4th behind The Longest Yard, Star Wars III and the number 1 movie, the asinine animated film Madagascar. I don't care, I enjoyed Cinderella Man and I will say it again, I'll be surprised if it doesn't walk away with some major Oscar nods. Of course I may be wrong, but it wouldn't be the first time. I just hope that angry Russell Crowe's antics don't hurt the film. Throwing a phone at a hotel clerk, come on. He thinks that just because he's sexxxxxxxy that he can act however he wants to. Ugh!!!

Jaw dropper of the day: If you happen to be in Taiwan (I know you're going for your next vacation) then you might want to check out Marton's. Marton means toilet in Chinese and toilets they have. It has a bathroom decor and the food is served in Western and Asian style toilets. Customers sit on toilet seats and urinals are part of the wall decorations. The dishes can be mixed up to resemble a veritable #2. I've included some pics of the restaurant and if you have a strong stomach then please eat there and let me know how it was. I myself think I'll pass.

Enjoy your day,

paul

And you too can have your food served in your very own toilet. Here's the webpage so you too can read the whole story on this true lavoratory experience. http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20050604/ap_on_fe_st/taiwan_royal_flush 

It's a restaurant the whole family can enjoy. 

Aren't the toilets pretty? These are the "chairs" the customers sit on in the restaurant. 

Another beautiful and warm day today. I guess it needs to rain (soon). Our town has issued a conserve water advisory. We are hoping that doesn't affect our well.

Jaw dropper of the day: Kylie Minogue, who was taken to Melbourne's Cabrini hospital to undergo surgery for breast cancer, caused a ruckus there when she was admitted. Minogue was given 8 out of 18 rooms used for cardio patients. The rooms were used for family and they were cleared out and guards posted and everyone who approached the rooms were treated like members of the media. Family and friends who were wishing to visit loved ones in the cardio ward had to enter through another part of the building. Apparently Minogue did not request the special treatment, however, it does seem a bit extreme. Granted she is much more popular in Australia than in America but she wasn't even a cardio patient.

Enjoy your Sunday,

paul

Rant of the week: I'm so sick of hearing about prisoner abuse, why can't something be done about this? Guantanamo Bay is currently holding around 500 some odd prisoners and most of them are not interrogated or considered to have important information. They also are not entitled to the rights of the Geneva Convention since they are not technically considered prisoners of war. There is currently a case before the Washington court of appeals to decide whether prisoners have been given all the due process they are entitled to. Just because the US is a super power does not entitle them to torture or bully detainees, they aren't even considered pow's. No wonder there is so much anti-American sentiment around the world. Am I proud to live in the US? Yes. Do I think this country has problems? Absolutely. So let's fix them already.

Fun fact: A typical Amish man walks around 18,000 steps a day; women 14,000. A typical American walks around 5,000 steps a day (taken from Time). Now maybe we should take a page from our Amish brothers and sisters and do more walking.

Video pick of the week: Continuing my quest to catch up on Oscar movies I've never seen, my pick for this week is Sayonara. Yes, that is Japanese for goodbye. The 1957 movie, filmed in Japan, tells the story of military personnel meeting and falling in love with Japanese women. A forbidden act, it details how the military brass controls their men by telling them who they can be with, love, show affection to (sound familiar?). It stars a 33 year old Marlon Brando who plays Major Gruver and how he is pro American women. That slowly changes over the course of the movie as he meets and falls in love with the head dancer of a Japanese dancing company. Miiko Taka plays the head dancer whom Brando's character falls in love with. During the movie one of Brando's men, Red Buttons, falls in love with and marries another Japanese girl. The movie chronicles the relationships of both men with their respective Japanese women. The movie is beautifully shot and though it is long and not action oriented at all, it does have a nice payoff although one couple doesn't have a "happy" ending. The movie also stars a young (29) James Garner. Seeing Garner and Brando together it was hard to decide who was sexier in their hayday. Miyoshi Umeki plays Buttons's on screen wife and both Umeki and Buttons are standouts in this movie and both won Oscars for their roles. Taka is also a standout. Brando does a fine job, however, it was hard for me to get past his "mumbling" and he always seemed to be squinting his eyes. I think he was more eye candy (for me anyway).

Enjoy your day,

paul

It's the weekend and of course it's overcast and it looks as if it might thunderstorm. I'm raving about Cinderella Man and telling everyone I see that it is a must see. It's not a perfect movie but it is a feel good movie. The only major criticism I have with the movie is it tugs at the heartstrings too much. It is still a moving piece of work and definitely an uplifitng film. Go see it today.

Jaw dropper of the day: If you go to www.tacobell.com and click on the link that says Food Sightings Museum, you can get a look at different types of food that people took pics of because the food had faces or objects within the food. As if the runaway bride on a piece of toast or the Virgin Mary in the grilled cheese wasn't enough, now we have Jesus sightings on taco bell's chalupas. People are encouraged to take pics of their own chalupa shells if they think there's a hidden image. If you go into the food sightings gallery you can look at the different images and decide if it's real or enhanced. Whatever happened to just eating the food instead of looking for hidden images?

Enjoy your Saturday,

paul

The first great movie of the summer is here. Cinderella Man, starring Russell Crowe, Renee Zellweger, Paul Giamatti and directed by Ron Howard, is a wonderful and thrilling movie. Oh, I know, another boxing movie, well don't think that, this movie is a hit (pun intended).

It tell the story of James J. Braddock who was a mediocre boxer and then lost everything during the depression, including his right to box. He was a wash up and fought to provide for his family. Then when another fighter was unable to fight and they needed someone legit who could fight on short notice, Braddock is the one they turned to. No one expected him to last one round let alone win the fight. Win he did and then he went on to fight the world heavyweight champion at the age of 30 and win that fight as well. Ron Howard is a wonderful director and the editing on the film is terrific, one of the best edited movies I've seen in a while. Of course, Crowe, Zellweger, and Giamatti give great performances and I'm so envious of Zellweger as she gets to cuddle, kiss and canoodle with Crowe (hubba hubba). I'll be very surprised if this film doesn't come away with some major Oscar noms. I'm hoping that this movie does not get lost in the summer shuffle. I am a bit surprised that this wasn't released in the fall.

Jaw dropper of the day: Talk about role playing......Authorities "freed" a Berlin man who was stuffed in the trunk of a car. A concerned citizen called police and told them she saw someone being locked in the trunk of a car. However, when police opened the trunk they saw a man with just a leather throng and a collar. That's all that he was wearing. The mistress was driving and the guy in the trunk was the slave. Officers insisted the man sit in the front of the car and sent the couple on their way. No doubt to another bout of role playing somewhere else.

More later,

paul

Hit The Road Foulkes

I've never professed to be perfect but I do live the best life I can lead. I strive to be honest, true to myself, friendly with others, and do good wherever I can. That's all we can do in this life. Life is not something to get through or to suffer through, it's living each day to the best of one's ability. It's a learning process that doesn't end until death.

What I'm listening to on the radio: I'm really enjoying the new Dave Matthews Band song, American Baby. I've liked certain songs by them, however, I've never been a devoted fan. I'm also enjoying Gavin DeGraw (he sounds a bit like Jon Bon Jovi) and his new song Chariot. One other song I'm enjoying is by a rock group called Staind (I kid you not) and their song Right Here.

Jaw dropper of the day: Talk about a road trip, this is the ultimate road trip. A woman in her 80's in Melbourne, Sydney, took to the road despite being refused an extension of her license. She was denied an extension due to old age. So Marian Foulkes and her husband Tom travelled 1,400 miles from Melbourne to New South Wales. At one point during their journey a cop, who thought they were disoriented, took their car keys so they travelled by bus for the remainder of their journey. They were eventually found at a hotel in Canberra, the Australian capital. Their son reported his parents missing and they travelled for two weeks before being found by police. Both of them have varying degrees of dementia, however, they no doubt enjoyed being "on the run."

Wherever you are today, enjoy it.

paul

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