... and I don't know why. What I do know is that there is no sign of an actual nest anywhere, and there is pigeon crap all over the place. Maybe they're having a lost weekend or something. I won't bug them, but they better clean up after themselves.
Friday, September 29, 2006
There are pigeons living on my balcony ...
... and I don't know why. What I do know is that there is no sign of an actual nest anywhere, and there is pigeon crap all over the place. Maybe they're having a lost weekend or something. I won't bug them, but they better clean up after themselves.
Thursday, September 28, 2006
The ghost of Tom Cruise ...
There's an old saying that goes something like this: Those who do not know their history are bound to repeat it. In Hollywood terms, we may be about to see a glaring example of that. Word is that Britney Spears has fired her longtime publicist with the goal of handling her own non-music p.r. from here on in. In other words, Brit has pulled a Tom Cruise, and we all know how well things went for poor Tommy after he kicked über-publicist Pat Kingsley to the curb in favor of his own sister. And considering the kind of pub Britney and her hubby K-Fed were getting with a professional lackey running things ... well, shudder the thought.
Get ready for some fun!
(Click the subject line to read the related article.)
Interesting campaign tactic ...
Click the subject line to read about how Jeanine Pirro, who is running for the position of attorney general of New York State, is now being investigated by the feds for plotting to illegally wiretap her wealthy husband over suspicions that he was having affairs behind her back.
This blog has purposely stayed away from political discussions for reasons both obvious and not so much. (Well, they're obvious to me, at least.) But I do have this observation: It may not be the best idea to break the law while seeking the elected position of upholding the law. Just a thought.
Oh, and notice Pirro's wonky eye in the photo accompanying the article. They can't help at the ballot box, either.
This blog has purposely stayed away from political discussions for reasons both obvious and not so much. (Well, they're obvious to me, at least.) But I do have this observation: It may not be the best idea to break the law while seeking the elected position of upholding the law. Just a thought.
Oh, and notice Pirro's wonky eye in the photo accompanying the article. They can't help at the ballot box, either.
Wins and losses, in more ways than one
In sports - in life, actually - in order for a Goliath to exist, there must be a David. Just ask the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, the moribund baseball franchise that has spend its entirely short existence in the same division as the New York Yankees. But is there a point where enough is enough? Should there be mercy rules when defeat is inevitable.
Earlier this year Connecticut instituted a "mercy rule" for its high school football teams, mandating that the coach of any team that defeated an opponent by more than 50 points would be suspended for the following game. Now a Michigan school board has gone one better (or one worse), canceling the remaining games of the team representing Oscoda Area High School because of their 0-4 opening record - four losses, no wins and no points. The rationale was that the team was overmatched by all of its opponents (the full story can be read by clicking the above subject line). But what does it say to the players who were valiantly giving their all? We teach our children never to quit, to always try their hardest, but when their elders do the quitting for them, how can that be a positive lesson in life? And what about the seniors on the team? I would bet that, even in this situation, at least a few of them may have had aspirations of football scholarships, scholarships that would have paved the way to college educations. Are they screwed now?
Yeah, it sucks to get your ass kicked week after week, whether it be on a football field or some other field of life. But those are the situations where characters can be forged for the better. But not in Oscoda, apparently, where the easy way out rules the day.
Earlier this year Connecticut instituted a "mercy rule" for its high school football teams, mandating that the coach of any team that defeated an opponent by more than 50 points would be suspended for the following game. Now a Michigan school board has gone one better (or one worse), canceling the remaining games of the team representing Oscoda Area High School because of their 0-4 opening record - four losses, no wins and no points. The rationale was that the team was overmatched by all of its opponents (the full story can be read by clicking the above subject line). But what does it say to the players who were valiantly giving their all? We teach our children never to quit, to always try their hardest, but when their elders do the quitting for them, how can that be a positive lesson in life? And what about the seniors on the team? I would bet that, even in this situation, at least a few of them may have had aspirations of football scholarships, scholarships that would have paved the way to college educations. Are they screwed now?
Yeah, it sucks to get your ass kicked week after week, whether it be on a football field or some other field of life. But those are the situations where characters can be forged for the better. But not in Oscoda, apparently, where the easy way out rules the day.
Friday, September 15, 2006
Shiver your timbers indeed!
Hey, Popeye, put that spinach down! There is a crisis surrounding the leafy green vegetable, as an E. coli outbreak that already has killed one person has put the temporary kibosh on spinach consumption. The FDA is warning everyone not to eat spinach, particularly the fresh, bagged variety, until further notice. The full story can be accessed by clicking on the subject above, but if your kids start celebrating that they won't be forced to eat the stuff, remind them that there's always Brussels sprouts.
Wednesday, September 13, 2006
Talk about "extra point"!
The spirit of Tonya Harding is alive and well (!) and living in Greeley, Colorado. That's the home of the University of Northern Colorado, where the Bears take to the gridiron and compete in the Big Sky Conference of the NCAA's Division 1-AA. It's also where what has to be the most bizarre police blotter report of any college sport this year just was written. From ESPN:
"The backup punter at Northern Colorado has been arrested on suspicion of stabbing his teammate -- the starting punter -- in the kicking leg.
The motive may have been competition for the first-string job, police said Wednesday."
Wow, sure is nice that the police may have figured out the motive that allgededly led Mitch Cozad from attacking Rafael Mendoza. 'Cause it was confusing to me.
Not surprisingly, Cozad has been kicked off the team and, indeed, off of campus as well. No word on if Mendoza did his best Nancy Kerrigan and sobbed "Why?" as blood poured from his thigh. I kind of doubt it.
Read the full ESPN story by clicking the subject line.
"The backup punter at Northern Colorado has been arrested on suspicion of stabbing his teammate -- the starting punter -- in the kicking leg.
The motive may have been competition for the first-string job, police said Wednesday."
Wow, sure is nice that the police may have figured out the motive that allgededly led Mitch Cozad from attacking Rafael Mendoza. 'Cause it was confusing to me.
Not surprisingly, Cozad has been kicked off the team and, indeed, off of campus as well. No word on if Mendoza did his best Nancy Kerrigan and sobbed "Why?" as blood poured from his thigh. I kind of doubt it.
Read the full ESPN story by clicking the subject line.
Tuesday, September 12, 2006
A wee lovely idea ...
Well, Steve Jobs slapped on the black sweater again today and announced some more new toys for Apple devotees (myself included) to play with. Including in his presentation this time was a new iTunes application that now includes downloads of feature films, along with still more new versions of the company's iPod music player. There's a "monster" that has 80 GB of storage (that's as much as my MacBook), a new incarnation of the nano that has 24 hours of battery life - and my personal fave, a reinvention of the iPod shuffle that half the size of the first model, which itself was the size of a pack of gum. Now the shuffle (seen above) is only 1.6 inches long and can be clipped onto your pocket. Song capacity: 240.
Now, I won't buy the shuffle, partly because I had just purchased a regular iPod a few months ago, and partly because the shuffle is so wee, I would lose it within a week - if not on the bus or at the mall, then definitely in my train wreck of an apartment. But the reason the shuffle bemuses me so is because of a skit on "Saturday Night Live" last fall that involved Fred Armisen doing a passable take on Jobs and his singular presentation style, one-up-manship and all. Click here to check out exactly what I'm talking about. And click the subject line if you're actually interested in buying the shuffle. I bet it's popular with 4-year-olds and smurfs. :)
Monday, September 11, 2006
My hero ...
I spent part of my weekend on a film set in Atlanta, waiting until 5 a.m. to interview the star of the movie, who was just as tired as I was. Earlier, at 1 a.m., I had "lunch" with much of the crew, eating homemade mac and cheese.
My friend Beth Kujawski spent part of her weekend walking 60 miles through suburban Chicago on behalf of breast cancer awareness and prevention.
I am a writer. Beth, who is also a writer, happens to be a hero as well.
The word "hero" is something to be used carefully, especially on this particular day and date. But while Beth didn't run into a burning building, she did walk a long distance for the betterment of others and the world in general. That sounds like a hero, or at least a type of hero, to me.
At some point today or tomorrow, Beth will write her account of her weekend on her blog, which is bookmarked on the right. Be sure to read and pay close attention. You will be glad you did, trust me.
My friend Beth Kujawski spent part of her weekend walking 60 miles through suburban Chicago on behalf of breast cancer awareness and prevention.
I am a writer. Beth, who is also a writer, happens to be a hero as well.
The word "hero" is something to be used carefully, especially on this particular day and date. But while Beth didn't run into a burning building, she did walk a long distance for the betterment of others and the world in general. That sounds like a hero, or at least a type of hero, to me.
At some point today or tomorrow, Beth will write her account of her weekend on her blog, which is bookmarked on the right. Be sure to read and pay close attention. You will be glad you did, trust me.
9-11-01
Say what you will about the mess this country is in right now - and, without getting terribly political, a mess is exactly what it is - but on this day, five years later, let's not forget why we're in the mess in the first place. May God, the Creator or whomever or whatever you believe in keep a look out for those who died on that horrible September day, and those who were left behind.
Monday, September 04, 2006
Crikey!
Steve Irwin, the Crocodile Hunter, lies dead tonight, the victim not of a bear or a python or a shark or even a croc, but of that most deadly of aquatic life - the stingray. Yes, in what may end up being the freakiest celebrity death of 2006 - that is, unless Andy Dick rears his peculiar head - the 44-year-old Irwin was done in by a chance encounter with one of the otherwise graceful sea creatures during a diving tour off of the Great Barrier Reef. It seemed that as Irwin jumped into the water, the stingray, buried in the sand underneath the water, picked that exact time for its barbed tail to spring out, where it stabbed Irwin in the chest and punctured his heart. The great Aussie environmentalist probably never knew what hit him.
This is a time to mourn the loss of a larger-than-life figure, to feel for his American-born widow and partner in business and nature, Terri, who now will have to raise two young children on her own and most likely maintain the vast empire she and Steve had created for the benefit of the wildlife of Australia and beyond. But it's also a chance to smile - not only for the good times Irwin brought to his fans, but out of envy for a man who died doing what he loved, and how many of us will be able to do that? Well, maybe Andy Dick eventually, though that's the fodder for an entirely separate blog entry. As wacky as Irwin could be, and that was pretty damn wacky (did I mention he was from Australia?), he inspired a generation of young people worldwide to get involved, in ways big and small, in the preservation of this planet and the fascinating creatures who live on it. And he did more for the fashion of shorty shorts on men than anyone this side of Richard Simmons.
So as you sit at your dinner table to say grace or whatever tonight, think a good thought for Steve Irwin. Better yet, hoist a pint or two of beer in his honor. Bonus points if it's a Foster's.
Wednesday, August 30, 2006
Dylan Goes iTunes ...
I don't whether this is the end of the world, or the beginning ...
Read more by clicking the subject line.
Thursday, August 24, 2006
Pluto voted off of the solar system island ...
Well, not exactly, but it sure seems like that after the International Astronomical Union - wow, just imagine the keggers those guys have - finally determined, after a long and acrimonious meeting in Prague, that Pluto, the icy sphere that has been considered the ninth planet in our solar system for more than 75 years, really doesn't deserve to be called a planet in the "classical" sense. In short, Pluto was bringing down the value of the neighborhood, so it is has been relegated to the ghetto of the land of "dwarf planets."
Pluto's major crime? It didn't help that its orbit isn't totally smooth, that its elliptical path around the sun overlaps with that of Planet Number Eight, Neptune. (In fact, from 1979 to 1999, Pluto was the eighth farthest "planet" from the sun because of that wacky orbit. Hope Plutonians enjoyed that brush with fame.) The official term being used by the IAU is actually "clearing the neighborhood" - really technical, guys.
Besides, stats prove that Pluto is a horrible place to raise children. You know - rampant crime, unattractive environments, average temperature of -387.4 degrees Fahrenheit. That's not exactly Vegas, guys.
So woe for fans of Pluto. Once again, the little guys get the shaft. Residents of Pluto probably will file a protest, but since they do have about 3.5 billion miles to travel to the meet with the IAU, this could take a while.
NOTE: One member of the IAU mentioned that few people would be "excited" by this decision, yet the organization's Web site was down when I just checked, apparently overwhelmed by that teeny level of excitement.
NOTE 2: Some may ask, if Pluto gets ejected from the planetary club because its orbit crosses that of Neptune's, then why isn't Neptune out? Apparently they wrote a footnote for Neptune dismissing that problem. So how does Neptune get out of that mess? Maybe they have photos of some of the more prominent IAU members playing with Uranus! [rimshot]
Tuesday, August 22, 2006
Snakes in a ... well, guess
You had to know this was coming ...
From a news Web site in, of all places, central Florida, where you know something like this would happen:
Two live diamondback rattlesnakes were released in an Arizona movie theater during a showing of the new film "Snakes on a Plane" ...
Authorities said pranksters released the young venomous rattlesnakes in a dark theater at the AMC Desert Ridge near Tatum and Loop 101 in Phoenix.
The two snakes caused a panic in the dark theater, according to the report.
"That to me is very scary," herpetological association representative Tom Whiting said. "I would hate to be watching a movie about snakes and have a rattlesnake bite me."
Wranglers were called to collect the snakes, the report said.
No one was injured in the incident and, so far, the culprits have not been caught.
Officials believe the snakes were smuggled into the theater in backpacks.
"This thing is under someone's chair and they go to sit and they just push your foot in the air and startle it -- obviously all they got to do is startle this thing," Phoenix Herpetological Society spokesman Daniel Marchand said. "It's dark. They can't see you, you know that well. If it's scared, boom it strikes."
The snakes were released into the desert.
I supposed in a day in which every other movie starring a rapper as a cop or a robber or something in between is greeted with at least one report about some "prankster" bringing a loaded weapon into a theater, this thing was a no-brainer. But then, how come this crap doesn't happen whenever there's a film about vampires? Where are the rattlesnakes then, eh?
Click the subject line for what I'm sure is some dazzling video.
From a news Web site in, of all places, central Florida, where you know something like this would happen:
Two live diamondback rattlesnakes were released in an Arizona movie theater during a showing of the new film "Snakes on a Plane" ...
Authorities said pranksters released the young venomous rattlesnakes in a dark theater at the AMC Desert Ridge near Tatum and Loop 101 in Phoenix.
The two snakes caused a panic in the dark theater, according to the report.
"That to me is very scary," herpetological association representative Tom Whiting said. "I would hate to be watching a movie about snakes and have a rattlesnake bite me."
Wranglers were called to collect the snakes, the report said.
No one was injured in the incident and, so far, the culprits have not been caught.
Officials believe the snakes were smuggled into the theater in backpacks.
"This thing is under someone's chair and they go to sit and they just push your foot in the air and startle it -- obviously all they got to do is startle this thing," Phoenix Herpetological Society spokesman Daniel Marchand said. "It's dark. They can't see you, you know that well. If it's scared, boom it strikes."
The snakes were released into the desert.
I supposed in a day in which every other movie starring a rapper as a cop or a robber or something in between is greeted with at least one report about some "prankster" bringing a loaded weapon into a theater, this thing was a no-brainer. But then, how come this crap doesn't happen whenever there's a film about vampires? Where are the rattlesnakes then, eh?
Click the subject line for what I'm sure is some dazzling video.
Saturday, August 19, 2006
Well, THAT was interesting ...
Last night, I was seen by a couple million people or so shilling for my new Snakes on a Plane book on MSNBC's Countdown with Keith Olbermann. It was quite the odd experience for someone who hadn't been on television since he was 17, and that was when I was the captain of my high school's academic team, and it's not that difficult to forget that there's a camera capturing your every move when you're trying to remember who was the President when the League of Nations was formed. This was something new and different, and an eye-opener for a guy who covers TV for a living, I must say. But rather than get long-winded, I thought I would tell this story in picture form. So, here we go!
This is the Lincoln Town Car that MSNBC sent to pick me up. Yeah, just like Herbie Stempel in Quiz Show, only without the NBC logo on the side. Fancy! The car even came with its own driver, Rich, which is good, 'cause I don't know how to drive. Rich was really cool - he knew how to get to the studio without any help.
This is Pacific Television Center, the West L.A. facility where I did my spot. I though they were going to take me to Burbank, but this was much more convenient to my location. Besides, there would be no place for Rich to park there since Leno hogs the parking lot with his 25 cars.
This is Patty, the women charged with the most difficult of tasks - to make me presentable for the air. I'd never had makeup applied to me before, and I can't say I was looking forward to it. But Patty was very gentle with me, and I didn't sneeze once during the process.
Note the protruding bald head, by the way ... scary!
This is the "green room," which of course isn't really green. It's weird to watch a show that you're going to be on actually in progress, especially when they promote your upcoming appearance. It really gives you a lot to think about.
See?
Finally, about 10 minutes before I went on the air, they called me into the actual studio, which is a fairly small room with a chair and a camera directly in front. Here one of the techs is preparing to wire me for sound, as it were. Notice the green wall behind, which was magically transformed into a nightscape, something I didn't even realize until it was all over, distracted as I was.
"Pay no attention to the person behind the black man ..."
This is what I saw directly ahead - a monitor of just me (which I had them turn off because it was way too distracting), a monitor that shows the actual broadcast (which was about 30 seconds behind what the actual interview) and the camera. Note the smiley face below the lens; that's what I was supposed to focus on while I was on the air.
Oh, and this may be a good time to note that Keith Olbermann, who is a SoaP fanatic, was actually off last night. I was interviewed by Brian Unger, whom I believe used to be on The Daily Show. I coped. :)
Patty does a final touch-up ...
I'm all ready to go. Slightly terrified, but ready to go ...
And ... and then I went on. The consensus seems to be that I didn't screw up. If you want to see me in action - and you have a PC with the proper equipment (no Macs allowed, sadly) - you can click on the headline to go to the Countdown page, where there have a link to my interview. But I lived. And as you can see below, I was very, very relieved to have done my thing without saying anything stupid. And on Monday - Geraldo!
A big thanks to my friend Anne, who was my support system and chief photographer for this mission ...
This is the Lincoln Town Car that MSNBC sent to pick me up. Yeah, just like Herbie Stempel in Quiz Show, only without the NBC logo on the side. Fancy! The car even came with its own driver, Rich, which is good, 'cause I don't know how to drive. Rich was really cool - he knew how to get to the studio without any help.
This is Pacific Television Center, the West L.A. facility where I did my spot. I though they were going to take me to Burbank, but this was much more convenient to my location. Besides, there would be no place for Rich to park there since Leno hogs the parking lot with his 25 cars.
This is Patty, the women charged with the most difficult of tasks - to make me presentable for the air. I'd never had makeup applied to me before, and I can't say I was looking forward to it. But Patty was very gentle with me, and I didn't sneeze once during the process.
Note the protruding bald head, by the way ... scary!
This is the "green room," which of course isn't really green. It's weird to watch a show that you're going to be on actually in progress, especially when they promote your upcoming appearance. It really gives you a lot to think about.
See?
Finally, about 10 minutes before I went on the air, they called me into the actual studio, which is a fairly small room with a chair and a camera directly in front. Here one of the techs is preparing to wire me for sound, as it were. Notice the green wall behind, which was magically transformed into a nightscape, something I didn't even realize until it was all over, distracted as I was.
"Pay no attention to the person behind the black man ..."
This is what I saw directly ahead - a monitor of just me (which I had them turn off because it was way too distracting), a monitor that shows the actual broadcast (which was about 30 seconds behind what the actual interview) and the camera. Note the smiley face below the lens; that's what I was supposed to focus on while I was on the air.
Oh, and this may be a good time to note that Keith Olbermann, who is a SoaP fanatic, was actually off last night. I was interviewed by Brian Unger, whom I believe used to be on The Daily Show. I coped. :)
Patty does a final touch-up ...
I'm all ready to go. Slightly terrified, but ready to go ...
And ... and then I went on. The consensus seems to be that I didn't screw up. If you want to see me in action - and you have a PC with the proper equipment (no Macs allowed, sadly) - you can click on the headline to go to the Countdown page, where there have a link to my interview. But I lived. And as you can see below, I was very, very relieved to have done my thing without saying anything stupid. And on Monday - Geraldo!
A big thanks to my friend Anne, who was my support system and chief photographer for this mission ...
Thursday, August 17, 2006
Perspective ...
Wow.
It's true what they say when they say that friends are the most valuable commodity that a person can have.
True friends are always there for you. They cheer you up when you're down, they pat you on the back when you've achieved something, and they snap you back to reality when your head grows too large for the rest of your body and soul.
I just experienced the last part of that equation, in a subtle but valuable way, thanks to one of my best friends in the world, the lovely and fair Beth.
Beth has been my friend for several years now. She was a co-worker at a previous job, and when that gig went away for both of us, we actually grew closer. Thanks to the companion known as unlimited long distance, we speak on the phone nearly every day, often multiple times, as well as e-mail and the occasional instant messaging. Hopefully some of you have checked out her own blog, which is bookmarked on the right side of this one.
Beth is really an extraordinary woman. She's a great writer, a good singer, an excellent cook and baker. (Brownies - mmmm.) And she's also a good bullshit detector. And I had told her when I started with the Snakes on a Plane book to keep me honest, to make sure that any part of the process didn't go to my head.
And today, it kind of did.
Today, believe it or not, I shot a story about me and my book for Geraldo Rivera's syndicated show, Geraldo at Large. (I know, I know. But it was interesting to see how such spots are put together.) The story will be on Monday - check local listings. But the point of this is that when I got home, I called Beth to tell her about it, since she works out of her place like me and thus is usually more readily available for impromptu conversations than some of my other, office-bound chums. And after telling her my tale, I threw this in: "I hope nothing happens in the world that would bump me out of the show."
What did I say, Beth asked. And, like a lummox, I repeated what I had just said. And then I knew what I had done.
There is a lot going on in the world today, something I don't have to tell you guys. And most of it is far more important than Snakes on a Plane or the book that I wrote about the response to the movie. Sure, films like this are, at their best, necessary diversions from the seriousness of the news. But that's all they are, diversions. And for me to put myself above Iraq or Israel or the oil prices or even the JonBenet Ramsey story - yeah, that was a bit much. And Beth said so in a way that was not scornful or mean, but nevertheless hit the nail on the head.
So I may get bumped on Monday if the world blows up or something. It won't be the end of the world. Well, it may be, but you get the picture. So Beth did her due diligence as a friend, which is precisely why she's my friend. That, and the brownies.
P.S. If the spirit moves you, donate some legal tender to Beth's 3-Day Breast Cancer Walk, the link to which can be found on her own blog site. She does it every year, it's a really good cause, and she is quite the good egg.
It's true what they say when they say that friends are the most valuable commodity that a person can have.
True friends are always there for you. They cheer you up when you're down, they pat you on the back when you've achieved something, and they snap you back to reality when your head grows too large for the rest of your body and soul.
I just experienced the last part of that equation, in a subtle but valuable way, thanks to one of my best friends in the world, the lovely and fair Beth.
Beth has been my friend for several years now. She was a co-worker at a previous job, and when that gig went away for both of us, we actually grew closer. Thanks to the companion known as unlimited long distance, we speak on the phone nearly every day, often multiple times, as well as e-mail and the occasional instant messaging. Hopefully some of you have checked out her own blog, which is bookmarked on the right side of this one.
Beth is really an extraordinary woman. She's a great writer, a good singer, an excellent cook and baker. (Brownies - mmmm.) And she's also a good bullshit detector. And I had told her when I started with the Snakes on a Plane book to keep me honest, to make sure that any part of the process didn't go to my head.
And today, it kind of did.
Today, believe it or not, I shot a story about me and my book for Geraldo Rivera's syndicated show, Geraldo at Large. (I know, I know. But it was interesting to see how such spots are put together.) The story will be on Monday - check local listings. But the point of this is that when I got home, I called Beth to tell her about it, since she works out of her place like me and thus is usually more readily available for impromptu conversations than some of my other, office-bound chums. And after telling her my tale, I threw this in: "I hope nothing happens in the world that would bump me out of the show."
What did I say, Beth asked. And, like a lummox, I repeated what I had just said. And then I knew what I had done.
There is a lot going on in the world today, something I don't have to tell you guys. And most of it is far more important than Snakes on a Plane or the book that I wrote about the response to the movie. Sure, films like this are, at their best, necessary diversions from the seriousness of the news. But that's all they are, diversions. And for me to put myself above Iraq or Israel or the oil prices or even the JonBenet Ramsey story - yeah, that was a bit much. And Beth said so in a way that was not scornful or mean, but nevertheless hit the nail on the head.
So I may get bumped on Monday if the world blows up or something. It won't be the end of the world. Well, it may be, but you get the picture. So Beth did her due diligence as a friend, which is precisely why she's my friend. That, and the brownies.
P.S. If the spirit moves you, donate some legal tender to Beth's 3-Day Breast Cancer Walk, the link to which can be found on her own blog site. She does it every year, it's a really good cause, and she is quite the good egg.
Wednesday, August 16, 2006
A quick thought about JonBenet Ramsey
Now that an actual suspect has been arrested in the murder of JonBenet Ramsey nearly 10 years after her slaying, and it appears to be the guy, I wonder if all of the people who publicly accused John and Patsy Ramsey of killing their 6-year-old daughter will have the balls to go up to John - and to go Patsy's grave - to apologize to them personally.
Just a thought.
Just a thought.
Pigs.
And now, a word about women. I love them. Just about all of them, with one or two exceptions (cough-Ann Coulter!-cough), but like most men or gay women, I do have my preferences. They aren't dealbreakers, but they're my things, and that's part of the tapestry that makes this planet so cool, or maybe so frustrating to the point of deadly warfare. Maybe it's somewhere in between.
One of those preferences is size. I prefer women who are curvy. This is not to say that I would turn my head away from a thin woman, but a lot depends on how thin she is. If she's, say, Sarah Jessica Parker thin, where there's some tone to her frame, that works. If she's Nicole Richie thin, then it's a no-go situation. If I'm with a woman in bed, I'd rather not slide off of her during the intimate moment. So you can guess that I'm not a big proponent of the trend that never ends, the Hollywood starlets that think that the best way to show off, to get that big part or that hot guy, is to have the figure of a 12-year-old emaciated boy from the Sudan.
So on the one end, I'm happy to see an article by Holly Millea in Details magazine about the revival of the curvy, healthy Hollywood babe in the forms of such actresses as Scarlett Johansson and Evangeline Lilly, not to mention "old" stalwarts such as Kate Winslet, Catherine Zeta-Jones and Drew Barrymore. What I am not happy about at all is the supplements the Details editors felt the need to add to Millea's piece to make it - oh, I don't know - punchier? Was it really necessary to use a headline such as "Why Fat Is Back in Hollywood"? Since when is Scarlett Johansson "fat"? This country has a serious, real problem with obesity, but it's not a solution to slap that label, however indirectly, on Liv Tyler or Katherine Heigl? And how clever is it to begin an online slideshow of famed voluptuous women with a shot of a pig wearing glittery high heels?
By invoking this tasteless imagery, the Details folks have dropped the ball. Millea's curve-positive article, standing alone, could have been a celebration of the notion that a woman doesn't have to starve herself to be sexy and desirable, in Hollywood or otherwise. Instead the editors went for the cheap thrill in an effort to be funny or cute. All they are, apparently, are idiots. We know where their bread is buttered now.
Click on the subject line to read Millea's article. It may help to use the printer-friendly version.
One of those preferences is size. I prefer women who are curvy. This is not to say that I would turn my head away from a thin woman, but a lot depends on how thin she is. If she's, say, Sarah Jessica Parker thin, where there's some tone to her frame, that works. If she's Nicole Richie thin, then it's a no-go situation. If I'm with a woman in bed, I'd rather not slide off of her during the intimate moment. So you can guess that I'm not a big proponent of the trend that never ends, the Hollywood starlets that think that the best way to show off, to get that big part or that hot guy, is to have the figure of a 12-year-old emaciated boy from the Sudan.
So on the one end, I'm happy to see an article by Holly Millea in Details magazine about the revival of the curvy, healthy Hollywood babe in the forms of such actresses as Scarlett Johansson and Evangeline Lilly, not to mention "old" stalwarts such as Kate Winslet, Catherine Zeta-Jones and Drew Barrymore. What I am not happy about at all is the supplements the Details editors felt the need to add to Millea's piece to make it - oh, I don't know - punchier? Was it really necessary to use a headline such as "Why Fat Is Back in Hollywood"? Since when is Scarlett Johansson "fat"? This country has a serious, real problem with obesity, but it's not a solution to slap that label, however indirectly, on Liv Tyler or Katherine Heigl? And how clever is it to begin an online slideshow of famed voluptuous women with a shot of a pig wearing glittery high heels?
By invoking this tasteless imagery, the Details folks have dropped the ball. Millea's curve-positive article, standing alone, could have been a celebration of the notion that a woman doesn't have to starve herself to be sexy and desirable, in Hollywood or otherwise. Instead the editors went for the cheap thrill in an effort to be funny or cute. All they are, apparently, are idiots. We know where their bread is buttered now.
Click on the subject line to read Millea's article. It may help to use the printer-friendly version.
Monday, August 14, 2006
He's still dead!
These photos of Castro and Hugh Chavez prove nothing - except, perhaps, that they are about to be wed. But would Chavez marry a corpse? Maybe - he's a bit of an odd duck, no?
Look, they match!
Sunday, August 13, 2006
He's dead!
Fidel Castro is dead. How he died, how long he has been dead - no one knows that except the powers that be in Cuba. But ever since they announced last week that he was relinquising power temporarily because of intestinal surgery, I had a feeling that there was more going on than meets the eye. This has all of the signs of what went on in the days of the Soviet Union when one of those old coots in charge would disappear for weeks or months on end, they would say that the codger had a head cold, and next thing you know, they're having his funeral. Since Cuba is the closest thing we have to a Soviet-like system, why wouldn't they do the same thing when their leader gets sick or worse?
And now today, the authorities in Havana have released some photos of their fearless leader to prove that he is still with us. One of them has Castro holding up a newspaper allegedly from today. See, this proves to me that Fidel is wormmeat. To have hom hold up a current newspaper as if he was a hostage or something - no, this has Photoshop written all over it.
Mark my words - in a month, they'll make the announcement. Relapse, they'll call it. But Fidel's in a freezer somewhere.
Snakes on My Blog!
Blogs. Wow, they are pesky things.
They are pesky because once you start one, there are those who, you know, feel that you have an obligation to update it on a regular basis. And that's not as easy as it sounds.
My dear friend Beth has a blog; it's bookmarked to your right (donate to her breast cancer walk!). She managed to blog about something at least once a day. It may be a review of a DVD she just saw or a musing about the state of the world, or even something as silly as an update on her hair. But she sticks with it. Considering she's a writer by trade, and that she's good at what she does, that's not that surprising. But I'm a writer by trade, and I've been told that I'm pretty good at what I do, and yet I've dong exactly one posting in the past two months. The spiders who have spun cobwebs on this blog are going to be pissed that there's disruption going on.
So what's my excuse?
Well, I have been busy, you know, writing my first book and seeing it actually published for consumption by the public. You can see the book pictured to your left, along with the curious face of the author. The book is called Snakes on a Plane: The Guide to the Internet Ssssssensation.
No, really, it is. Can't you see the cover?
It's a long story to explain what it's about and how it happened. Suffice it to say that there is a movie that's about to be released called Snakes on a Plane. It is about ... well, snakes on a plane - more specifically, the crate of poisonous snakes that has been smuggled onto a jet plane going from Hawaii to Los Angeles. The plane that is carrying a witness to the murder trial of a notorious crime lord, with federal agent Samuel L. Jackson covering his ass. The snakes are there to kill everyone on the plane, especially the witness, with no fingerprints from the crime lord remaining. Well, Mr. Jackson gets wind of the plot, and then everyone else did, which explains the flood of SoaP material that has turned up on the Internet, created not by a marketing department but rather by ordinary people with vivid imaginations about what they want this movie to be.
In fact, the fan reaction became so rabid that New Line did the only sensible thing they could - they got out of everyone's way. In the past, other studios have become very protective of their intellectual material, often showering industrious online fans of their projects with cease-and-desist orders to remove any material that comes to close to comfort in their eyes. But New Line went the other way. In fact, they went so far to authorize five days of reshoots back in March based mostly on the ideas of the fans. The result should be a gorier, sexier and much more profane SoaP than the studio was planning for. Soon after than, New Line coordinated a contest to pick an up-and-coming musical act to contribute a song to the SoaP soundtrack. And the official Web page now includes images and mini-apps that people can use for their own sites.
And now, a book about the phenomenon that has been thrust upon us by SoaP. It wasn't my idea. An agent called me out of the blue in early April, had an idea that a book about this would be a big success. I agreed, especially after a cursory review of the stuff that was out there. And so I wrote the proposal for the book, then it sold, then I had basically the month of June to churn out a 96-page manuscript, complete with the images that would accompany the text. That meant a lot of interviews, a lot of transcription, a lot of everything except for sleep and healthy eating.
And the result? Hopefully not only a compendium of the best, brightest and oddest that is out then in terms of SoaP fandom, but also an examination of how a simple, silly movie can motivate so many to put their own brains to the grindstone to produce thins such as a movie short or a song, or a poem or a children's story, or a line of T-shirts. You don't see anyone doing this for Mission: Impossible III now, do you? This is heady stuff we're dealing with here. And by this time next week, we should know how ultimately effective it all was. Personally, I'll be surprised if SoaP makes less than $40 million for its opening weekend. And the worse it is, the better. Just as long as it's not boring.
So that is primarily where I have been for so long. The book kind of took over my life, and it's still there. Because now comes the publicity. Actually, it's been going on for a while. Already I've been interviewed by E! Online, Reuters, The Christian Science Monitor and the Toronto Star. Entertainment Weekly quoted me in their big SoaP cover story last week. And in about five minutes I do the first of several radio interviews set for this week, which is the big push for the book. Oh, and I'm going to be on TV with Keith Olbermann on MSNBC on Wednesday. Olbermann has been a big fan of the film for months now, so me being on with him is to be expected, I guess. This is all so weird for me. I hope I never get used to it.
By the way, if I get a big head about all of this, you'll let me know, right?
Right?
Buy my book! :)
Amazon
Barnes & Noble
They are pesky because once you start one, there are those who, you know, feel that you have an obligation to update it on a regular basis. And that's not as easy as it sounds.
My dear friend Beth has a blog; it's bookmarked to your right (donate to her breast cancer walk!). She managed to blog about something at least once a day. It may be a review of a DVD she just saw or a musing about the state of the world, or even something as silly as an update on her hair. But she sticks with it. Considering she's a writer by trade, and that she's good at what she does, that's not that surprising. But I'm a writer by trade, and I've been told that I'm pretty good at what I do, and yet I've dong exactly one posting in the past two months. The spiders who have spun cobwebs on this blog are going to be pissed that there's disruption going on.
So what's my excuse?
Well, I have been busy, you know, writing my first book and seeing it actually published for consumption by the public. You can see the book pictured to your left, along with the curious face of the author. The book is called Snakes on a Plane: The Guide to the Internet Ssssssensation.
No, really, it is. Can't you see the cover?
It's a long story to explain what it's about and how it happened. Suffice it to say that there is a movie that's about to be released called Snakes on a Plane. It is about ... well, snakes on a plane - more specifically, the crate of poisonous snakes that has been smuggled onto a jet plane going from Hawaii to Los Angeles. The plane that is carrying a witness to the murder trial of a notorious crime lord, with federal agent Samuel L. Jackson covering his ass. The snakes are there to kill everyone on the plane, especially the witness, with no fingerprints from the crime lord remaining. Well, Mr. Jackson gets wind of the plot, and then everyone else did, which explains the flood of SoaP material that has turned up on the Internet, created not by a marketing department but rather by ordinary people with vivid imaginations about what they want this movie to be.
In fact, the fan reaction became so rabid that New Line did the only sensible thing they could - they got out of everyone's way. In the past, other studios have become very protective of their intellectual material, often showering industrious online fans of their projects with cease-and-desist orders to remove any material that comes to close to comfort in their eyes. But New Line went the other way. In fact, they went so far to authorize five days of reshoots back in March based mostly on the ideas of the fans. The result should be a gorier, sexier and much more profane SoaP than the studio was planning for. Soon after than, New Line coordinated a contest to pick an up-and-coming musical act to contribute a song to the SoaP soundtrack. And the official Web page now includes images and mini-apps that people can use for their own sites.
And now, a book about the phenomenon that has been thrust upon us by SoaP. It wasn't my idea. An agent called me out of the blue in early April, had an idea that a book about this would be a big success. I agreed, especially after a cursory review of the stuff that was out there. And so I wrote the proposal for the book, then it sold, then I had basically the month of June to churn out a 96-page manuscript, complete with the images that would accompany the text. That meant a lot of interviews, a lot of transcription, a lot of everything except for sleep and healthy eating.
And the result? Hopefully not only a compendium of the best, brightest and oddest that is out then in terms of SoaP fandom, but also an examination of how a simple, silly movie can motivate so many to put their own brains to the grindstone to produce thins such as a movie short or a song, or a poem or a children's story, or a line of T-shirts. You don't see anyone doing this for Mission: Impossible III now, do you? This is heady stuff we're dealing with here. And by this time next week, we should know how ultimately effective it all was. Personally, I'll be surprised if SoaP makes less than $40 million for its opening weekend. And the worse it is, the better. Just as long as it's not boring.
So that is primarily where I have been for so long. The book kind of took over my life, and it's still there. Because now comes the publicity. Actually, it's been going on for a while. Already I've been interviewed by E! Online, Reuters, The Christian Science Monitor and the Toronto Star. Entertainment Weekly quoted me in their big SoaP cover story last week. And in about five minutes I do the first of several radio interviews set for this week, which is the big push for the book. Oh, and I'm going to be on TV with Keith Olbermann on MSNBC on Wednesday. Olbermann has been a big fan of the film for months now, so me being on with him is to be expected, I guess. This is all so weird for me. I hope I never get used to it.
By the way, if I get a big head about all of this, you'll let me know, right?
Right?
Buy my book! :)
Amazon
Barnes & Noble
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