John Cougar's America Part 2

For those of you who read my first post last Monday about John Cougar I was unaware of the stupid comments he made. I'm sure they are on You Tube so I won't repeat them here. If you missed my post, just go on back to last Monday to see what it was about.

I wasn't referring to his politics only his song lyrics and how I see them. Fact of the matter he is an American and has the right to be an idiot if he wants to be. He can say the most outlandish, moronic things because he has the constitutional right to do so.

He likely has no foreign political skills, no diplomacy skills, no knowledge of how to govern, and used to write good songs. Now he just isn't what he used to be when it comes to selling albums. No big surprise there.

He has to stand against what is seemingly unpopular in the most outlandish fashion to separate himself from the pack of elite leftists. Keep in mind that 98% of all the hollering about Iraq is by the party that is out of the white house so therefore EVERYTHING that is done by the white house is bad and has to be whined about so they can regain power.

This is the best economy in the history of the country and yet there is a candidate who wants to kill it by raising capital gains and corporate income tax. Sound good? Want to know what would happen to your 401K or your pension plan if that happened? It would be close to worthless as it would be taxed to death.

Robin Hood just doesn't exist in this day and age. Who makes up corporations? PEOPLE like you and I who work for them to provide a service to others. A corporation can't exist without us and yet somehow the word corporate or corporation is bad....well that is a perception anyway and I happen to not agree with it.

My company does good my retirement package gets better, if the country does good and the economy does good my pension plan gets better.

People like John Cougar don't understand fundamental basics of why we are all Americans and we should all want the same thing for our own benefit. I'm not saying you can't disagree, not by any means. Protest, pitch a fit, throw a temper tantrum, it is all your right to do but don't be an idiot, research your position and know what you are talking about first.

I Missed Celebreality Last Night

And instead spent it with a closing cast party of the musical. A wonderful time was had!

New projects were discussed as well as older projects and ideas. Many of my friends were there and some new people I was unfamiliar with but it was still a lot of fun! I was invited after I had talked to Beersnob and he said that they were striking the set of the musical so I thought I'd drive up and see what I could do to help out.

It kept me out of the house so I didn't have to watch those horrid shows that I seem to have become addicted to. I'm sure Brett Michaels and Scott Baio got along fine without me.

So to sum up, good time by all, no celebreality update this morning thank goodness, and its going to be a great day!!!!

December 18, 2007

Blade Runner: The Ultimate Collection will be released onto DVD with no less than FIVE versions of the film! Theatrical, International, Director's, The Final Cut, and the first Workprint of the Ridley Scott masterpiece.

Blade Runner is a scifi masterpiece in every sense of the word. The concept is simple, six replicants escape to Earth and Richard Deckard is sent to retire them. One of the biggest controversies surrounding the movie is the theory that Deckard himself is a replicant.

Is he? Isn't he? You can probably find evidence to support both thoughts however I lean towards the He Is camp.

Blade Runner is a dreary movie, it is dark, rainy, gloomy. LA is overcrowded and blimps fly around advertising a new life off world. The chance to escape the confines of Earth. You see a blending of technology and old film noir. In the US theatrical version the studio dictated Ridley Scott supply a Harrison Ford voice over to narrate the story. That is the version I first saw and was amazed with. I was around thirteen I believe.

I was blown away by this movie but all of the subtle story devices were lost on me at the time. I just saw the surface and not all of the implications of such a story. All of the snippets of scenes that have caused massive essays on the film and debate fodder.

Just do a search on the movie. There are lots and lots of sites devoted to the philosophy of the movie. That alone will quickly tell you that this movie alone, well outside of the Star Wars universe, has inspired more debate than any other movie from that era. Its slow paced, esoteric, and the forerunner for intellectual scifi movies such as The Matrix.

There is a huge market for smart Scifi that just isn't being filled anymore. Primer was brilliant but few saw it. The Scifi Channel which should champion good scifi has turned into the cheap effects movie channel. They have bad movies on all the time.

Want to know what a great hit would be? A intellectual scifi series that focused on characters.....oh wait....Firefly got canceled after a few episodes didn't it....Well a sprawling epic that was like a novel for TV....oh wait, Babylon 5 struggled for ratings its entire run but still completed the series.

Well maybe there isn't a big market for smart scifi anymore, however I do know that TV is cyclical and that as soon as the court room drama and procedural dramas are at their end something has to fill up that space and well made scifi that challenges the viewer would be perfect! Lost is a good example of that show. It can be done again though!

I have that idea and an idea to complete the entire series, to tell the whole planned story without fear of being canceled by the studios so that the people watching feel comfortable and get the conclusion they want and deserve.

Great Evening!

Well after I got home yesterday after work I decided to put Zodiac in as I had purchased it earlier in the week but didn't have the chance to watch it since I was at the pub the following two nights.

So I got the movie out of the sack and noticed it was the full screen version and not the wide screen version that I always get. So I fixed some supper and planned on taking the movie back to exchange it. It was Friday night after all and I really didn't have any plans.

I took the movie back, exchanged it for the proper version got back to an email from a friend who would like to collaborate on a short film before filming on the fanfilm begins. We have a little extra time to do so. I reply and then put the movie in.

Zodiac is a pretty good movie, David Fincher directed it who did Seven, Fight Club, Panic Room. He is known for very stylish movies. This one was that and a bit more. It made me want to visit a Zodiac site to see how close the movie was compared to the actual investigation.

Then I check my My Space site to see that Beersnob had messaged me and said that the musical cast was having a cast party in the lobby and to come down after the performance! So around 10 I figured the show was nearly over so I went down to the theater to find that it wasn't and so I decided to walk over to the pub.

It was way too crowded to hang out and have a quiet drink so I walked across the street and an alley to another fine establishment to find it was the atmosphere I was in the mood for. I order my traditional drink and just settle in a bit and in walks Chianti!!!! We have a nice chat and Nick the boy intern gets off work and hangs out with us a while too.

I look out at the theater and see people leaving so I tab out say my good nights and head back over to the theater to the lobby. Everyone comes up and hugs me! I have a great time just visiting until around midnight when the party starts to break up.

All in all a brilliant evening that was totally unplanned:):) I was so happy to have it!!!!

Another Evening At The Pub

What a great couple of evenings the past two have been!

Sass is back in town for a few days and is a great drinking buddy. I seem to have an abundance of drinking buds now which is really cool:) Of course she is going to be gone very soon but Weezy will be back shortly for a visit!:)

I wasn't able to post early this morning as usual, there was an outage and as such no internet, however it is all working perfectly now!

A fairly easy day at work. Mulling over some short film ideas to fill the time up before shooting the Fanfilm which looks to start before September 17. So there is plenty of time to get the documentary edited, we are very close to our happy ending now and then get a short filmed and edited.

Going to be a busy time!!!!

Out Last Night

And probably tonight as well.
After rehearsal for the new show ended I got a call from a good friend and we went to the pub to hang out for a few hours. Beersnob showed up and he is just naturally a great addition to any conversation or get together so I stayed about another hour and a half.

Tonight there is a live band and probably at least one more person who is going to be there. So again it will be supper at the pub and probably one drink like last night with a couple of iced teas.

Man things are so good:)

Everything just goes along so easily now:) Work was pretty good, I kind of have a small project that will keep me somewhat busy for another day or two and I get to be a little creative with it by putting a Dale Earnhardt 3 on a pod that fastens under a jet alone with some black striping.

I know it doesn't sound like much and it really isn't but it is something different and as such something to have some fun with:)

How Do You Spell Trainwreck?

Lindsay Lohan.

Busted again yesterday morning for yet another DUI and possession of narcotics just a few weeks out of rehab.

She isn't going to escape jail time. I can imagine that she faces years and not celebrity time as in weeks or months. She is in big trouble and not the legal kind. People with a lack of IQ and skills to get along in the world are doomed to repeat this kind of behavior until they are serious about changing it. She has never been told no to anything in her life. She has never had any boundaries put up to protect her.

So what if she is talented, she needs serious help years ago and now it is likely too late to change the bed she made. Now there is no insurance company in the world who will touch her.

In other news I finished my play this past weekend and sent it to theater people for opinions.
My vehicle is back with a brand new water pump in it so all is good!

Home Day 2

I was home yesterday and now again today.

I have had a water pump leak in my Suburban for a while now and decided to finally have it fixed. Work was caught up pretty well and it seemed like a good time since money was abundant.

So I called last week and he said to bring it in Monday morning, cool! I did that but he called later on to say that no one in town had a water pump for a 6.2 diesel on hand and it would be one extra day before it comes in.

So yesterday I was home, decided to mow, broke the starting cable, now I can't mow:)
He should have the truck done this morning and everything will be good!

John Cougar's America

Alright when you are in your early teens things start to change. You start to experience things you haven't experienced before. Most the time everything gets blown out of proportion because everything is new and you are starting to find out who you are and who you are going to be. Lots of new emotions and situations to deal with.

Well in 1982 I was 12. Most kids don't have a lot of responsibility at 12 but I wasn't one of them. That is for another post someday though.

There is one thing about 1982 though that makes it memorable for me. American Fool came out in 1982 and with it the single Jack and Diane. The slice of small town America song about teen kids falling in love or lust. Their first real love.

That is the age when you wonder why people (read adults) didn't think of things before and why they don't do what you believe is easier or a better way. You are a teen after all and know way more than anyone else. That is another nasty side effect of all of those new emotions. Omnipotence.

So in 1982 John Cougar, as he was known back then (he has multiple name changes in the ensuing years of his career) releases an album of anthems for the young. He strikes a collective nerve in America and they take notice and he has a long career with probably the biggest release being 1985's Scarecrow, he was John Cougar Mellencamp at the time.

With the imagery in the video of eating outside by a Tasty Freeze, chili dogs, motorcycles, driving by a lake, and essentially everything you really want as a coming of age in America late teen. It all represents freedom. You have your dreams and there is nothing to stand in your way, just go get them. How hard could it be? Seriously, what could go wrong?

Oh yeah, the other part of the song, Life goes on long after the thrill of living is gone. That really comes into play in John Cougar's next release Uh-huh with Pink Houses and the line about the guy discovering at a young age he is at his destination which isn't much after aspiring to be President. What a let down that must be.

Does life go on after the thrill of living is gone? Ask me a few years ago and I'd have said yes. Now I'm positive the thrill is what you make it out to be. It depends on if you have found out what you are living for or not. If you know what you want to do, if you have discovered your passion then emphatically NO, life goes on but you look forward to each day with a new sense of excitement!

If you have no clue as to what you want to do and have given no thought to it, yes, you are doomed to a life on a treadmill. So from Jack and Diane to Pink Houses these are songs for those people in America who don't really have an idea of what they want. For those people who don't have a passion for anything or haven't discovered it yet.

I happened to have figured it out a few years ago. Since then every single day is an opportunity to create, it is just a matter of if I create something or not. If you find your passion it really doesn't matter if you can or can't make a living at it. You are doing what you love to do. What you want to do every day, day after day. It can change too! There aren't any limits, it can evolve.

It is vitally important to find your passion. Once you narrow that down you find ambition and motivation. Things start to go better for you. You have a destination and all kind of other 'tions to go with it!

Ask yourself, are you on the treadmill or are you living your passion? Have you found it yet? When are you going to start looking?

There is a P.S. to this post and that would be how many people actually quote James Dean? Out of all the Hollywood stars to quote and imitate he probably has the least amount of imitators out there.

Camera Changing Day!

So there I am, just relaxing all day long until about 2:30 when Beersnob calls me and asks me if I have an old camera to replace the ancient camera at the theater. So I round up everything except the important cable that goes from the charger to the camera to run it on DC.

We drive over to Radio Shack and see if they have any kind of cable. They don't.
Se we walk to Rex's to see if they might have a cable and check prices on a new camera that would work. They don't and $179.00.
We go by K-Mart to see if they have a camera, they don't.

We decide to head back to the theater and put the ancient camera back up. We get there and get the camera hooked back up only to find that it wasn't working now. We mess with it for at least an hour and a half trying everything to get it going again to no avail.

So now we really have a problem since the production was going on in about three hours and there would be no monitors in the green room or the dressing rooms. The actors would have a tougher time with their on stage cues. They are just very handy to have and now they wouldn't have them.

I take his car and come back to my house to see if I can find the cable. I find every single cable I have ever lost but that one. So I head back to the theater and give the bad news. We decide to head back to Rex's and get the cheap camera and just have the theater reimburse Beersnob for the camera and cables that have to be purchased.

We get back to the theater with camera and cables, hook it all up in just a few minutes and amazingly it works the first time! The monitors look great! Everyone is happy with the much improved quality of the picture and we had a project to fix for the day!

A Drive And An Hour

Last night I decided to take a drive over to an Indian Casino and unwind for a bit. It is about an hour over and back so it was just me, my Sirius and the NFL channel, and some money.

I actually did pretty decent, had a lot of fun, and got some supper at the same time. I was up quite a bit but that was just shortly into my visit and what fun is that to only stay a few minutes? I wanted to hang out and play. So since it was expendable cash I decided to keep playing. I wound up about sixty down but you know what?

So what. Sixty dollars is nothing compared to the fun I wanted to have!

I just wanted to play the money was irrelevant.

After about an hour I felt better and came on back home. Made it in around 9 and chilled out the rest of the evening feeling pretty good!

If you get the urge, just go out and play a little bit.

752-753

Barroids hit two homers yesterday after going 0-21 in his last at bats.

If no one bans him from baseball soon he will break the record which will be a massive black eye to a sport that has gone fifteen rounds with Tyson, Holyfield, and Foreman in back to back to back fights.

This is why people don't care about baseball anymore and the NFL is king! Baseball is for elitist owners who have their set ways and want no interference from anyone except congress. They fear congress will take away their exemptions so when congress talks they listen closely.

I have only watched very few games since the World Series strike. I've watched the '04 ALCS and the World Series that year. I watched Dice-K pitch. I've watched the meaningful games between the Sox and the Yanks. But outside of all that, no. Don't care.

Bring on the NFL! At least the Commissioner Roger Goodell takes a stand on screw ups. Pacman Jones? OUT! Chris Henry? Suspended! We have yet to see what happens to Vick but I'm sure it will be something.

Bud Selig has made no plans to see Bonds break the record. If it had been a good guy he would have followed every game when it got this close. But it isn't a good guy, it is Barry Bonds. The poster child for what is wrong with baseball.

At this point I can only hope that Bonds does it on the road. He will have boos rain down upon him while half of the crowd will recognize the magnitude of 756 and applaud albeit probably muffled. Then we only have to wait around six to eight years for Arod to catch up.

Say what you want about Arod and most people do, but he isn't a cheater. He is a naturally great hitter who has head problems in the clutch. His surrounding environment bothers him and he can't shut it all out. The newspapers rake him over the coals when he only hits 40+ homers per year and 150 RBIs with a batting average in the mid .300s.

So my friends, cheer for the accomplishment, be classy and don't kneecap Bonds with a Louisville Slugger.

Fun Evening!

After Chianti's visit there was a final dress rehearsal for the musical this year at the theater.

I didn't attend the musical but I did hang out afterwards with friends for a few hours and that was great as always! Interesting conversation was abundant. Observations were made. Laughs were had. All in all a very good and fun time!

Thanks guys, you made for a wonderful evening!

Sadistic

My wonderful friend and fellow Drinkbuster Chianti came over to have a drink after work and of course we chatted Michael Vick.

Neither of us got it. We couldn't wrap our heads around the brutal nature of these people. Not the concept of the fighting dogs, not the execution of the losing dogs in sadistic ways, not the gambling aspect, none of it.

She had no answers. I had no answers.

It is honestly beyond my understanding. This is cruel, inhumane, and the element that counts this activity among their hobbies are among the lowest of the low. I'm not talking about animals that are raised for food, I'm talking domesticated animals. Animals that you see every day that love you and you love.

Anyone who knows me knows I wanted to be a boxer as a late teen. It appealed to me but it is a violent sport. You are alone in the ring versus another human being. There is an aspect of it that leaves no room for excuses, it is honest. You have worked hard to be there and are in great shape in order to be there. You want to be there and have made that choice. You made a whole string of choices to be into that position.

The dogs have no choice in the matter. They are helpless. They deserve to be protected.
Children are helpless and need to be protected. What real man would allow a child to be abused and not protect them with every drop of your blood? A small helpless child or a helpless animal.

My days of wanting to be a boxer are long over but if you hurt a child, an animal, a woman, one of my friends, one of my family around me and my usual calm and unflappable exterior will quickly turn into swift and violent action. I'm average sized but properly motivated I can be a mean and brutal individual. I hope I'm never in the position to be that person.

People of Michael Vick's ilk are degenerates. If you have any connection to dog fighting you deserve every single bad thing that happens to you and more. You deserve to have your life burned down around you. You deserve to be treated as you treated the dogs. You deserve to fight another dog fighter and if you lose you deserve to be executed.

The Ballad Of Michael Vick

He came into the league with such promise! After being unstoppable at VTech, Vick looked like he had the whole world as an open oyster. Never understood that phrase but whatever. I mean have you seen an open oyster? Not pretty, how about a new phrase!

Vick as if he was going to rob the open bank vault of life! More applicable but not quite right. Anyway, he had commercials, the cover of Maddens, a massive contract, and all the talent in the world to do what he wanted on the field. What he didn't have is a moral compass.

Vick has been a train wreck the past couple of seasons. Ron Mexico (research it), the water bottle/airport incident, and dog fighting.

How low of a human being do you have to be to enjoy dog fighting? I can almost understand seal clubbing since it is a population control of sorts and is for fur but dog fighting is just out and out cruel. It is for the sole purpose of watching your dog kill another dog or vice versa. You raise mean dogs to kill other vicious dogs. Yes you can do it for money but you know something? Vick had a hundred million dollar contract.

He didn't need the money. His relatives didn't need the money. No one around Vick needed any money. Vick was involved, his cousin was involved, I saw a report on ESPN where a undercover guy reported that his dog beat Vick's dog and he witnessed him at the fights several times.

Barry Bonds is a jerk, a cheater, the epitome of the spoiled, rich, athlete who hates everyone and is a miserable human being and I would stand up and cheer, find the guy and buy him a drink if someone kneecapped him before he broke Hammerin' Hanks' record but at least he isn't Michael Vick.

Vick is a low life, the lowest of the low. I hope he goes to prison forever. I hope his family goes to prison forever. I hope all dog fighters all over the States go to prison forever.

I hope that with everything Vick has now, it is gone in a few months. Confiscated by the Feds and put up for public auction, purchased by a animal sanctuary and they turn his mansions into a animal refuge for crippled pets. I hope that the Falcons release him out right, I hope the commissioner bans him for life, and I hope he never plays a down of football again as long as he lives.

Plugging Away!

My script is a week old today! It is growing, slowly now but still growing.

I have a lot to add to it right now. The physical stuff I left out, when the actors come in, leave, what they do. You know descriptive stuff.

It might not take a lot of that to make it better.

I made three paintings last night however it was way too hot, even in the shade. The parts I needed to dry slowly dried way too fast, even with clear coat sprayed over the top to keep it from drying quickly. I just need cooler weather to make them good, as they are, they just don't look finished.

Monday Part 2

The second half of Monday is at the plate now. But you know something? It's alright!
No big deal at all. I can handle this day like any other day and its going to be pretty good no matter what it is called!

So I worked yesterday, big deal. I earned a lot of money for one day, there wasn't a lot of work to do so it was mostly my Ipod and me. I listened to the NFL channel on Sirius for a while. Had lunch and still got plenty of rest.

Its already a good day, I've got a house, utilities, a great AC since it is supposed to get hot today, I'm only a few days away from payday which is always a good day too. So with everything considered a one day weekend isn't so bad.

One of the best things is that I'm not Bret Michaels or Flavor Flav! While there would be benefits to being someone like them, there are also a lot more drawbacks like a single digit IQ and a lack of many skills we non music stars take for granted.

Just When You Think

Flavor of love set a new low in TV along comes Rock of Love with Bret Michaels.
The rock n roll version of Flavor of love.

Twenty one women are competing to get into Bret's pants. 90% blond and white, 99% dumb, and I'm not kidding.

I'm not joking not in the least. That includes Bret himself.

So far there has been such wisdom as, "At fifteen I was told the secret of relationships. There are lots of women you want to be friends with, there are lots more you want to have sex with, when you find those few that you want to have sex with AND be friends with, well then that is the rock of love."

Along with the classy, "I was named Miss Hooters from Indiana. That gives me all the tools I need to get my man."

They start to bond and become BFFs forever and ever (screech) and then Bret takes pictures of all of the women, kisses them, and sends them on their way. Followed by, "When I saw Tiffany, there was part of me that just said I want to make love right now and another part that said she was on a lot of chemicals and that really turned me on."

How bad can TV get? This should be on network TV, that is how bad this show is.
This show is a conversational train wreck. It is hilarious and at the same time scary.
It isn't as bad as I Love New York, she was just a special kind of crazy. I really felt like scouring with comet after watching that show.

My show prediction is Bret has sex with all of these women, probably more than once, there will be lots of cat fights, lots of tears, lots of drama, and a sequel show.

It's Monday Part 1

I'm up to thirty nine pages now in the script! I can add probably another ten easy. That will make it a good length for a stage production.

It is going to be fairly complex with two separate stages going so it might actually tire an audience as well as the cast. It should run just over an hour at fifty pages. This is a great project! I think people will like the idea when they read it and the actors will be challenged by their roles.

So yeah, it is Monday part 1 for me. I am about ready to head into work today and as with most things, I look at the bright side of it and choose to feel good anyway. I can't do anything about it, this is mandatory and it'll pay really well. There will be a strong possibility of this happening over the next eight weeks.

It looks like it is going to get hot today. No rain in the forecast until mid-week.

It is also that time of the year when Fantasy Football starts to dominate my time off!!!
Time to start doing research and homework! The NFL channel will start being the only channel on Sirius I listen to just to get the edge over my other leaguemates.

Thirty Pages!!!!

Yes my friends I have reached the thirty page mark in my stage project! Not bad huh?
Again my TV never came on last night. Amazing for me but true. I'm averaging around five pages per day.

I keep listening to the file on which this is based, I keep reading the original transcript. I'm at a point now where there needs to be come creative writing because the original takes a big turn and it isn't as easy to write in the context of this story.

I'm solving it though, it will just take some tweaking and persistence.

Well today is my only day off. Tomorrow is a full work day. That's going to make for a long week at work. The good thing is that tomorrow is the last day you can work and still have the money on the next payday.

Full speed ahead!!!!

Twenty Five Pages!!!!

Yep, I've got around twenty five pages written so far!!!! Not bad since I just started the other day!!!!

I haven't heard from the administrator of the rights to the intellectual property yet so I'm proceeding as if I have permission. The actual idea is what I'm after, the story has been changed enough in characters, actions, and even plot that it resembles the original but doesn't at the same time.

Well it rained hard yesterday on the way to work and very very hard and loud last night. Woke me up it was so loud! Well normally this would be my Friday however not so this weekend. We have to work Sunday. I'm low on the overtime list so unless there was a volunteer to work I have to along with five others. A full regular work day.

I really value my time off more than the overtime but the money will spend just the same!

Progress!

The story is coming along, nearly twenty pages are done now!
I have to admit, the TV came on for Ghost Hunters and that kind of killed my writing momentum.

I'll keep you informed, I'm in a bit of a hurry this morning. It is starting to rain this morning already again. That's alright, I'm starting to like living in Seattle, Oklahoma.

Inspired!

I was listening to my ipod yesterday at work when I came across an old file I hadn't heard since I was a young'n. Yeah I got it a few years back and didn't really listen to it I guess but it was there so I selected it and listened to it.

Then I was struck by something akin to lightning....inspiration. Now for those of you who know me know that I get ideas all the time, some good, some bad, some stupid but this one really seems good.

Well at the time they all SEEM good but upon further review they might not be as good as first thought.

Anyway this audio file seemed like it would make a good STAGE PRODUCTION....yeah coming from the film guy.

Inspired? Yeah, I was so inspired as soon as I made it home I started writing it, well typing it and got thirteen pages finished. My TV never came on last night. I am going to pick up a notebook where I get coffee this morning and write more at work. I have the audio file on my ipod so I have been listening to it while I write to make sure I get it right.

I'll transcribe what I write today and soon have a good first draft to rewrite. I know how most of it would translate to the stage, that was the inspired part. It just came to me in a flash. It would look impressive and yet not be that difficult to a set builder with some minimal skills.

I know I shouldn't be talking about something like this at such an early stage but this idea might be a good "good" idea. Not like have the times on the paper route when some of those good ideas really weren't "good" ideas....I know at least one of you out there knows exactly what I'm talking about and can probably still remember several of the good ideas that really weren't so good.

I would have done some painting last night but it was too hot for it. It has to be around 70-80 degrees to give yourself enough time to manipulate the paint on the poster board. Over 90 and it dries way too fast UNLESS you are very good and I'm just not yet.

I'm testing to see what works for me and it takes longer that way. I have bought more poster board though and I'm confidant that soon I'll be making some ten minute paintings with ease. I have the skies down, they are easy, what isn't as easy is the finishing part. It is hard to tell where to stop and what makes a good painting a bad one.

Is There Anything Better Than

Ice cream with chocolate syrup on a hot evening?!?!
Talk about a simple pleasure of life, that has got to be a big one right there. Now usually I just get rocky road, cookie dough, or a variety of Ben and Jerry's flavors since they all pretty much rock.

But sometimes it is hard to resist the pull of a simple bowl of vanilla with chocolate syrup on it. The way it melts together along the edges and blends into a very cold and sweet chocolaty concoction is just too much!

I feel for countries who can't explore something like this. I've seen documentaries about various tribes around the globe and they won't get to taste such a fine dessert as this but then again I won't be able to sample fresh cow's blood mixed with milk either....I wonder if they think the same thing about ice cream as we would about their version of a delicacy.

I wonder if they would look at a bowl of ice cream and it would revolt them. After all it is mostly a cow's product as well and to me cows are one of the most tastiest creatures on the planet along with the pig.

I've seen some of those tribes do some very bizarre things with a cow, it might stem from boredom, I don't know. If I were stuck out there in the wild and just had a herd of cows to pass the time it might be difficult to amuse myself and the rest of the tribe without involving the bovine in some way.

I Saw A Iphone!!!!

I forgot to talk about this at the Friday night party. I saw a real life, working, beautiful Iphone!!!!

I have to tell you that if the storage space was more than 8 gigs I'd get one and dump my landline!
I'm sorry but 8 gigs just don't cut it for me. That is twice the RAM alone I have in my main PC!

Now let me tell you about it, the screen was bright and full of detail. The touch screen worked flawlessly, the keyboard was amazingly simple, the web looked like the web should look like, email and chat a breeze! It is essentially the first widescreen Ipod but with only a limited amount of storage in which 700 megs of that is taken up by the OS.

It takes great pictures and is a do it all device! The service is a mere five dollars a month more than I'm paying for my landline now so it really wouldn't matter much at all cost wise.

It was an amazing experience for a techie guy like me who loves new, shiny gadgets and this is from one of the few holdouts of the cell phone revolution!

The Embarrassment Reunion

The Charm School Reunion show was last night. Oh my what a train wreck some of these girls really are. There were so many language edits I thought I was watching a Roadrunner cartoon with all the beeps.

I wonder if there is going to be a second season. I really kind of hope not, this was painful to watch. Some of these women were devious, mean spirited, horrible examples of human beings, and out and out classless. Now there were some good and genuine women there too but they were easily out numbered.

Yesterday I helped fix a laptop for a dear friend, did three test paintings, finished mowing the yard, and did my laundry.

That was the most productive day I've had in the past five, that makes for a pretty good few days off!!!!

Live Earth Bust

The hypocritical Algore crowd was at it again yesterday, burning up thousands of gallons of fuel, traveling hundreds of thousands of miles in private jets, powering thousands of lights and amplifiers, and telling YOU how to live your life while not following their own advice.

So why does a rock star (and washed up hypocrite politician) have more knowledge about climate change and have more insight into a problem that IMHO is just a normal cycle of weather patterns than you do?

THEY DON'T!

Have you ever noticed that those who champion socialist programs are only championing that YOU LIVE UNDER those socialist programs while they live they way they choose. That is called elitism. Remember it. Congress if full of elitists.

Keep in mind every single time you hear about you reducing your carbon footprint that means that they get to keep their private jets, massive mansions which cost as much as four houses to heat and cool, and lifestyle of doing as they please because they justify those things by "saving the earth" and working hard for them.

Well I work hard for what I have as well and they have no right to tell me how I should live. I'm all for being able to better yourself and living the way you choose. Keeping what you earn free from an oppressive tax system which favors lobbyists and for a fair tax that makes paying taxes simple and doesn't penalize success.

Name me one socialist dictator who lives in a normal house as a common man. Do you think Fidel Castro got the same health care that his citizens get? NO! Because it wasn't good enough, he brought in a surgeon from Spain when he was at death's door because he can afford it while keeping his population in poverty!!!!

Educate yourself on the issues my friends and always keep in mind that if it is some kind of centralized socialist program that the people advocating it are getting something better for themselves.

What A Night!

It all started a little after 8 p.m. last night as I headed over to a party for a guy who was involved with Gaslight a few years ago. He had returned to visit after his wedding.

So I gathered up some margarita mixtures, a couple of bottles of tequila, a blender, and some ice and went over. I came back home about 3 a.m. and was pretty sober. I had quit drinking about three hours before I left and did a jump into the pool for a few minutes.

Most of the regulars were there that I know and enjoy. It was fun all the way around! There was food, drink, and frivolity!

Now I have to motivate myself to mow.

Cover Of Life Shirts!!!!

There are now Cover of Life shirts on sale here!
And here is one designed with the cast and crew names on the back that is a little cheaper and has free shipping.

Cover of Life is the production I was involved in as stage manager and it so happens that I was in the main picture that promoted the show as well. If you look close you can see me on the left in the picture that the girls are holding. Catina played Sybil who was my wife and also on the left, I drove her to suicide....go figure....but it wasn't MY fault, I wasn't even in the play just the story!

Anyway it is cool that they made a shirt for the show, it was a great show.

This is the only show that got a T made for it for the season. Well there are also other things you can get such as mugs, mousepads, etc.

I could be a day off but the newspaper report came out on the 8th of July but I believe today is the 60th anniversary of the crash at Roswell which pretty much launched the conspiracy theorist, UFO, and most unexplained phenomena cultures.

What really happened? I don't know. There are lots of people who swear they saw something including Public Relations Officer Walter Haut.

He was the man who issued the famous "Flying Disc Captured" news story and then was ordered to issue the infamous weather balloon statement afterwards. He died in December 05 and left a affidavit to be opened some time after his death. It was opened and read a couple of weeks ago and it verified that everything he originally issued was the truth. He swore that he would never tell the truth while he was alive and he never benefited from his knowledge while he could have written several books, appearances, and the like.

He would have been a high profile (in Roswell UFO circles) figure and could have been a minor celebrity. He swore he wouldn't and he didn't but he left his sworn statement.

Now I know that no amount of disclosure information from the military or the government would ever be enough for most UFOnicks. Nothing short of saying they are here and operate every single McDonald's franchise and even then there would be some controversy that would spawn another theory.

So it doesn't surprise me at all that if nothing crashed, nothing happened and the military and government was 100% truthful about it that no one would believe it. So will we ever get the full truth? I guess it just depends on what you want to believe.

Errand Running Day

I've got a few errands to run today, I just have to make myself get out and do them.
I'm not really feeling the urge to get out but I know I have to. Those bills just won't pay themselves.

I know I need some Coke, I'll go into caffeine withdrawl and it'll bring on a headache and I want to avoid that. I'm drinking my last can now so I've got to get out!

It is getting hot out, it is so humid out. It didn't rain last night but it was cool and sprinkled. My cat is trying to find a way to get into my lap but it is so hot right now (yeah I just turned on the AC so it'll take some time to cool down) that I just don't want them both make it hotter.

I've been putting off getting paint and I need to find a place that has all the colors I need. I've just been lazy the past couple of days although I did find the time and dug up the effort to watch a lot of the Twilight Zone marathon yesterday on Scifi.

I wonder if I can muster up the same determination it would take to see the Dead Like Me marathon that is going on today?

Oh well, this is a five day vacation, I don't have to do anything right?

I did watch the last few minutes of the big hot dog eating contest on You Tube. Wow, it made me sick just watching. Wow, the winner ate (I use that word loosely) sixty six hot dogs in twelve minutes.

It was a bit sickening to watch but the winner is from America and won the first championship in six years from Kobayashi. Look it up, it is unreal how much and how fast they can eat.

Happy Birthday America!!!!

The country I dearly love, the greatest country in the history of the world, the beacon of freedom, the only country in the world people will risk their lives braving vast oceans on rickety, makeshift boats to get to.

The chance at a better life, the chance to experience freedom as FDR sums it up in his "Four Freedoms" speech which I'll excerpt here for you:

In the future days which we seek to make secure, we look
forward to a world founded upon four essential human freedoms.

The first is freedom of speech and expression
-- everywhere in the world.

The second is freedom of every person to worship God in his
own way -- everywhere in the world.

The third is freedom from want, which, translated into world
terms, means economic understandings which will secure to
every nation a healthy peacetime life for its inhabitants
-- everywhere in the world.

The fourth is freedom from fear, which, translated into
world terms, means a world-wide reduction of armaments
to such a point and in such a thorough fashion that no nation
will be in a position to commit an act of physical aggression
against any neighbor -- anywhere in the world.

That is no vision of a distant millennium. It is a definite
basis for a kind of world attainable in our own time and
generation. That kind of world is the very antithesis of
the so-called "new order" of tyranny which the dictators
seek to create with the crash of a bomb.

- Franklin Delano Roosevelt,
excerpted from the Annual Message to the Congress,
January 6, 1941

Please my friends, remember why we celebrate today.
Please remember those who are in harm's way right now and those who served and suffered to give us one more freedom which is more prevalent today, the freedom not to care.

Its Friday!!!!

In a very real way! I'm off tomorrow for the 4th of July and then Thursday and Friday I'm off and it doesn't cost me any leave! We have this program at work where if you donate to charity a set amount, usually around sixty dollars you get eight hours of leave! So I donated to two charities and got sixteen hours!!!!

How cool is that?!?!?! So now I've got a five day weekend coming up with today being Friday:)
I plan on looking for spray paints and poster board. I went to Wal-Mart over the weekend and amazingly could find only a limited amount of colors in one brand. That is important, take it from someone who has over twenty years in this field, brands usually don't play well with other brands.

So the trick is finding about nine to ten colors in the same brand. Krylon had a lot of off beat colors at Wal-Mart but none of the basic important colors. White, Black, Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, and then a light color of Blue, and whatever fun colors you can find such as Purple, or brights, and top it off with a can of Clear to lay over the whole thing for protection. And then triple your Black, Red, White, Orange, and Blue because you will be using a lot of those colors.

So that is the plan for my time off:)

Not Your Average White Chick Chained Up By A Black Guy Movie

Black Snake Moan is quite a movie. The premise is simple, a young town slut goes to a party after her boyfriend goes off to the National Guard, gets very wasted on booze and pills, has sex a couple of times, is beaten up, and finally dumped across the street of Lazarus's house. A bluesman who just had his wife of over twenty years leave him after having an affair with his brother.

Well he heals her and since she has a fever and is pretty sick she wonders around his yard only to have Laz track her down, so he does what every normal person would do, chains her up.

This is really a touching movie.
It is about broken people.
It is about love.
It is about how people can be redeemed.
How people heal each other.
How there is good in people despite appearances.

There is a very powerful scene where there is a storm rolling in, Laz breaks out his electric guitar for the first time in years and starts to play for Rae. I couldn't get the volume high enough for this scene. Very cool!

Christina Ricci is very hot now. She really developed and has become a very good actor. Samuel L. Jackson is always stellar and shines in this role. Watch it, you'll like it!

Charm School ended last night as well. Saaphyri won. She gave the most touching speech at the end and sounded like she could use the money the most to buy a house. This one really didn't have any of the drama of the past shows since all of the main troublemakers have been expelled in shows past. It was still good for a show I hate though.

We Won And Lost!

Well we only played one game last night and we beat the always formidable Dodge City by one point, 94-93! However we didn't qualify to be in the championship game.

So today at 2 p.m. Brooklyn will face off against the Kansas Cagerz.
I really have no desire to watch two teams that aren't my team to play.

I'm grilling four hamburgers this morning for brunch as I just got up about forty five minutes ago. I'm now starving!

I'm watching an old slasher movie, The Slumber Party Massacre. One of the better post Friday the 13th era additions to the genre. A seemingly unstoppable killer, a bunch of half naked chicks, and some campy fun.