Absinthe & Cookies (a bit bitter, a bit sweet)

Boo!

I'm BAACK!!! Did you miss me? Seeing all the comments Eclectra's been getting, maybe I should let her take over!

Thank you, Eclectra for guest blogging, and thank you, Paul, for keeping an eye on the blog while I was gone and vanquishing the comment spammers. And a big thank you to my bro for getting the DSL set up here in the new casa.

We had a busy and tiring trip, work tomorrow, tonight I'm going to veg in front of the TV. Saw there was some major news while I was away and feel totally out of touch. Will try and get 'plugged in' tomorrow. Till then, toodles!

Oh, wait! Thank you Angela and Ian for the coffee grinder! It was here last night when we got in and I used it this morning. WONDERFUL!! You two are da bomb :)

Now, toodles!

Most Asinine Campaign Ad in my Mailbox?

That would be the one sent out by Ila McCutcheon, running for Marina mayor, for her fifth-grader slap-and-scratch at Bruce Delgado.

The flyer showed a picture-perfect family of four plus dog on their immaculate lawn before their sparkling suburban house, in living Kodachrome.

Then next to it a black-and-white snapshot of an abandoned house on Ft Ord with dilapidated garage door and trash strewn in the driveway.

The copy said something like "whose vision do you want for Marina? Ila McCutcheon's or Bruce Delgado's?" You can guess which picture went with which candidate's name.

This was so clumsy, so low, so lamebrain, my son and I erupted in spontaneous hoots of derision. How stupid do you imagine people to be?

The worst of it is, though it's a nonpartisan post, Ila is known to be a REPUBLICAN and Bruce is apparently a green. My only consolation is that it illustrates how bad Republicans are at playing the left's bitchy little games.

Thanks for the tip, PP!

Planned Parenthood, that is.

Got an urgent women's-survival-is-at-stake letter in the mail, warning me that my precious right to destroy my children was threatened if Abel Maldonado were to win for state senate. "Good to know," thought I, "and I shall scribble a little note at the top saying 'thank you for the clarification, I shall be sure to vote for Mr. Maldonado,' and send it back."

Only after doing so did I notice that the brave transgressive perverts of PP neglected to put any return address on letter or envelope.

For best continuing expose of PP filth, by the way, don't miss Dawn Eden's blog.

You call that a Hobbit?

Mister, you don't know from hobbits.

Poor old lady, it's tough being senile

Did you see this one about the Colorado centenarian says she's voting for Kerry "of course?"

Now, now dears, one day we may be long in the tooth, short in the cerebral cortex as well.

What about the vote of Careless Youth?

My daughter, 19, registered nonpartisan (influence of waffley father) but is voting Bush.

What's your feel on the Gen-whatevertheyares? Are they as false, vapid, and sheeplike as MoveOn and Sex in the City think? My sense is that they are not, propagandized out the wazoo though they've been.

That Touch of Nausea

What I chiefly remember about the aftermath of Gore vs. Bush was nausea of watching with anxiety the attempted hijacking of the election. Chads, recounts, and lawsuits--it was horrible; I experienced a physiological reaction that felt like a low-grade flu for weeks because of what Gore's thugs were doing to our beloved country. I'm pretty sure I"m not the only one who felt that way.

Dang, can't wait to go through it all over again.

Calling you one-liner impresarios

If you were printing a bumper sticker for this election, what would it say?

How bout,

Kerry's face in a circle with a slash through it-- "Avoid buyer's remorse. Vote Bush"

Or hey, how bout the Kerry face and slash with "No gigolos"?

Or "John Kerry? Are you insane?"

For a subversive sticker, "Vive le Kerry"

Ah, I dunno, help me out folks.

Outrage against my person

Forgot to tell you, a coworker I've known and liked a long time came to work with a Kerry sticker and, pointing to it proudly, struck a muscle-man pose. He said, 'I'm not seeing any Bush stickers, guess anyone voting for him is too embarrassed to say so."

I said, "I'm voting for Bush, and I"m not embarrassed about it."

He said, "You're voting for Bush?"

"Yeah, I'm voting for Bush."

"YOU'RE VOTING FOR BUSH?"

"Yes, I'm voting for Bush."

"Get out of here." With that he rose from his chair and literally, physically bundled me out the door of his office.

Have democrats gone nuts?

Sign count?

How's the tally for Bush and Kerry signs in your neck of the woods? I'm seeing very few Bush, even at the Naval Postgraduate School.

Is it naive optimism to believe that A) with Soros paying the printer, Kerry signs are easier to come by and B) Bush people are going to be no talk, all action on election day?

I never did find out how to get a Bush sticker. Guess I didn't try hard enough.

Mood Lighting

We're having a brownout here on the Monterey Peninsula. I have to type by the light of my Powerbook screen.

My friends, this wouldn't happen if Kerry were president.

Well I am supposed to

Well I am supposed to be guest blogging for your adored hostess and FINALLY I check in. I was down in LA at my high-school reunion, and, though my dewy cheek and sparkling eye belie it, it was my 30th. Class of 74. Wow. When I graduated h.s., five years was an eternity, and thirty inconceivable, but it's either grow older or die--unless there's a third possibility?

Amazing how much of the class of 74 was waylaid by drugs. People kept saying how they never did college or whatever because they were so stoned.

While my friend was scouting out face lifts, I was noticing the guys, er, distingished pillars of the community. They looked older than us because they don't highlight their hair to cover gray.

So I ask you (bringing it round to politics), what oh what will Johnny Edwards do hairwise for his 30th, and how old is he anyway (just checked, he's 49)?

Guys, bear with me, I"m just saying, we all saw and marvelled at the Edwards primping marathon on Drudge--and did you detect even one hair of gray in those chestnut tresses? Yet the guy's pushing fifty.

I mean, for purposes of comparison, he's two years older than moi, and I've been highlighting awhile now, okay?

So maybe our Breck Girl keeps regular playdates with Miss Clairol. Cause it's really important to presidential-level gravitas to be able to swing the head in ingenue slo mo and the hair to follow in a silken, shimmering cascade of youthen ecstasy.

Looking For Ideas

Hi folks, CrankyBeach here, sneaking aboard in Ith's absence. I don't dare post this on my own blog 'cause the victim --er, birthday boy-- reads mine. (At least, he BETTER be reading it!)

Anybody has any ideas, you can post them in the comments here, OR feel free to e-mail me privately at crankybeach-blogmail at mailblocks dot com.

Okay, here's the deal. There's this guy. (How many stories have you ever heard that started that way?) He badly needs to be tortured (hee hee hee) but that's another story. His 50th birthday is coming up, as is my forty-harumph. Our birthdays are only 2 weeks apart, and we agreed to celebrate them together. I told him I was planning something "diabolical" for his birthday, and hoped he was planning something equally diabolical for mine.

Now I just have to come up with something, well, diabolical!

Put on your thinking caps, friends and neighbors, and help me out here. The celebration will probably involve something like dinner and a movie (in public) so the diabolical part will have to happen not so publicly. (Hey, this guy has some standing in the community, and I don't want to completely blow his reputation, or what's left of mine!)

Any and all suggestions will be greatly appreciated.

We now return you to your regularly scheduled programming.

Hey, Kids

I'm busy busy today, getting everything ready for my week away. As you might assume, that means little to no blogging today. So, everyone be nice to Eclectra, who has volunteered to guest host again, and I'll see you Nov. 1! (unless I find a computer in my travels where I can sneak on for a moment)

Later!

R.E.R.

Check out Myrick for the latest Red Ensign Roundup.

The "Little People"

Why do I have the feeling that to Ta- ray- za, taking care of the "little people" means letting the servants have a half day off on Saturday?

Accepting Applications

Since I will be incommunicado from Sat on, I'm accepting applications for one, maybe two, guest bloggers. Email me at edithna AT yahoo DOT com telling me why you should be guest blogger for a week, and my people will get back to your people.

Hero Speak

Now this sounds like fun. I'm too pooped to participate, but reading other folks' entries is good too.

On That Baseball Playoff Thing

I don't care!

That is all.

(guaranteed baseball free blogzone)

Yesterday Was A Wet Hell

Yesterday was the big move for me and Nin. Now normally, that would be bad enough, but what did it do yesterday? It POURED RAIN!! A full blown torrential downpour. It was like January in October. October is the nicest month of the year: it isn't foggy, it's crisp and bright, it doesn't RAIN! But yesterday, it did. We were so wet, it looked like someone had dropped buckets of water over our heads. At one point it stormed so bad, we had to stand around the apartment and wait for it to calm down just a bit. So here I am in soaking wet jeans, putting up with it because if U change the next set of clothes will get just as wet. But finally, I couldn't take it anymore and changed. Not 1/2 an hour later, I fell backwards, losing my balance lifting a particularly heavy bit of furniture from the truck, straight into a puddle the size of a pond.

We started at 8am when we picked up the truck, and Nin and I fell onto our air mattresses about 1230am this morning. I can't even get enough pressure in my fingers today to squeeze the stapler -- I hurt! I'm never ever moving myself again!! I don't care what it costs, I'm hiring movers. I'm way too old for this. Tonight, after work, I'm going to try and get the cable working, TV setup, while Nin goes back to the house for several more loads. hopefully, by Saturday, everything will be done, since Sunday is when we load of the pets and head for Utah.

Did I mention how exhausted I am?

Okay, I'll stop whining now, I swear!

Pooped

Taking a wee break from the neverending packing/hauling/packing that seems to be my life. Nin and I got a lot of stuff moved over the new place (it needs a name... Chateau La NinIth?) yesterday, and made a trip to Tarjay. Today, we've been in the house packing our hearts out.

Tired, sleepy.

On a totally different subject, the Farscape movie is on tonight!

We Wants It now!

Trailer for the extended RotK DVD -- utterly awesome!

Very Kewl

New landlord lady called and said the old tenants are out, and if we'd like the keys, we can start moving stuff into the kitchen, bathroom, & closet tonight if we like. Monday, the carpets will be cleaned and the locks changed, Monday night, we get our keys, and we officially move in on Tuesday. Nin and I have taken that day off, and I'm renting a truck, and my brother went and took the day off as well to help out. Hopefully, it will be short work with what we can move over the weekend into uncarpeted portions of the apartment and the storage locker.

The Therapeutic Mind

Good one today from VDH:

.... To all you of the therapeutic mindset, listen up. We can no more reason with the Islamic fascists than we could sympathize with the Nazis' demands over supposedly exploited Germans in Czechoslovakia or the problem of Tojo's Japan's not getting its timely scrap-metal shipments from Roosevelt's America. Their pouts and gripes are not intended to be adjudicated as much as to weaken the resolve of many in the United States who find the entire "war against terror" too big, or the wrong kind, of a nuisance.

Instead, read the fatwas. You hear not just of America's injustice in Palestine or Chechnya — not to mention nothing about saving Kuwait, Bosnia, Kosovo or Afghanistan of the 1980s — but also of what we did in Spain in the 15th century and in Tyre, Gaza, and Jerusalem in the 12th. The mystery of September 11, 2001, is not that it happened, but that it did not quite happen when first tried in 1993 during Bill Clinton's madcap efforts to move a smiling Arafat into the Lincoln Bedroom and keep our hands off bin Laden. Only an American with a JD or PhD would cling to the idea that there was not a connection between Group A Middle Eastern terrorists who attacked the WTC in 1993 and Group B who finished the job in 2001.

A Retarded Nazi

When I first saw this yesterday, I thought it had to be a hoax. I mean, come on! But it's actually real.

Feel the love, people. If you're a Republican, you're not only evil and a Nazi, you're retarded too! Though, I think they're mixing their metaphors, because Nazis murdered the mentally disabled, didn't they? Yeah, John Kerry being elected is really going to heal the divisions in this country. If he wins [wards off evil eye] I get to have a President who thinks I'm a retarded Nazi! Cool!

You know, I didn't vote for Clinton, but I gave him the benefit of the doubt when he was elected. Kerry, on the other hand, isn't getting even 5 seconds from me. I'm going to use the Democrat party as my example on how to treat a President. It'll be different, but turning the other cheek is over rated. I think an eye for an eye is more along the lines of what I'm going for.

100,000 Thanks!

Tuesday, I passed the 100,000 visitors mark, and I wanted to thank each and everyone of you who reads, links, and comments here.

THANK YOU!

Let's Talk About "Lost"

WHOA!!!

Discuss :)

Irony

Today, while driving to work, I was behind a car covered in environmental
stickers. "Save the whales", "Save the trees", "save the honey badger". That
sort of sticker.

The irony?

The woman driving was flicking her cigarette ash out the window.

Also, she had a John Kerry for president bumper sticker.

Democrat and hypocrite!

Bouteille Call

I love Bonny Doon!

An Epic

Miller's Time took on the gargangtuan task of doing a complete BFL roundup.

Atari Goes Retro

Atari is bringing back some of its classic early video games from the 1980s in the upcoming release Atari Anthology for the Playstation2 and Xbox systems, the company announced. The anthology includes 80 games originally produced for the Atari 2600 and 7800 systems, plus five new bonus games.

Among the games in the collection are the arcade classics Asteroids and Missile Command, the castle-and-dragon game Adventure and the space-themed games Yar's Revenge and Space War. Atari Anthology will be available in November for a retail price of $19.99.

Via SciFi Wire

A Small Request

Could those of you that still have this blog linked at the old URL: ondragonswing.com/journal/gaggle (and some even still have the old name: Gaggle of Gals) pretty please change the link to http://bittersweet.ondragonswing.com?

What with the new and improved ecosystem, it would be great to have a nice fresh start. And it helps me to know who's actually linking here so I can go visit :)

Thanks!

Pressie!

Thank you, Debbie for the great crepe pan! I will use it frequently :)

Getting unexpected gifts is just the coolest!

100,000!

Hey, I almost missed it -- I'm nearly at 100,000 on SiteMeter!

(and it only took me close to three years)

Update: Went over the mark last night about 11pm.

YES!

Mum just called from Utah, and the house is now officially ours! Thank you to everyone who sent their support our way. I really do appreciate it!

(the mortgage is less than the rent on my new apartment)

Snorfle

Via (Fugitive) Jen, comes the "Nuisance Advisory System".

Such Heady Matters

Just what is a watch? You know, tick tock, or flash flash, on your wrist. It's a matter of deep import here in the wilds of Carmel!

Timeless question befuddles council: What is a watch?

THE QUESTIONS of whether watches are jewelry, if only certain types of watches are jewelry, what constitutes a mechanical watch, and if watches can be sold by anyone other than Carmel-by-the-Sea’s 32 downtown jewelry stores should be pondered by the planning commission, the city council decided Tuesday night. Members felt they lacked sufficient information to vote on a proposed amendment to the zoning code that would allow clock shops to sell watches, which the city specifically defines as jewelry.

Hughes Beck, a foreign-trained watch repairman who opened a clock shop on Lincoln Street but was forced to close after he was caught selling watches — a privilege limited to the city’s licensed jewelry stores — applied for the law change. As it stands, he would have to wait for a jewelry store license to become available and then sell a full line of jewelry alongside his watches and clocks.

[....]

Following that hearing, Beck submitted an alternative that would narrow the type of watches clock shops could sell to mechanical timepieces, eliminating battery- or solar-powered quartz watches. Both proposals stipulated the presence of onsite watch and clock repair.

The planning commission did not review the alternative proposal, and Roseth declined to make a staff recommendation without its input, but he said it “goes a good measure” toward addressing some of the commission’s concerns.

Representing Beck, attorney Jim Heisinger argued for separating mechanical watches from other sorts of timepieces.

“They are works of art and are machines — perhaps the finest made machines in the world,” he said. “You can’t sell those machines in Carmel unless you include them with tennis bracelets and rings. My client would like to sell and maintain those machines.”

Councilman Erik Bethel was confused by the definition, saying practically any type of watch could be defined as mechanical, including a $25 Timex, and Roseth said only timepieces that are wound or run off kinetic energy would be included. Low-cost wind-up watches are also available on the market.

[....]

“Numerical caps create artificial monopolies that are anticompetitive and do not contribute to Carmel’s charm,” he said. “This amendment is exactly what we need to promote diversity in Carmel and put an end to the nonsense overreaction that has made Carmel a laughing stock in some circles.”

But given the confusion over the definition of mechanical, let alone the definition of watches, as well as the lack of review and recommendation from the planning commission and staff on Beck’s alternative proposal, councilwoman Paula Hazdovac wanted the revised application returned to the commission. The majority of the council agreed 4-1, with Rose voting no.

The last time a business owner attempted, and succeeded, in changing Carmel’s rules to fit his business plan occurred five years ago, when Gasper Cardinale took on the city in a one-and-a-half-year battle for the right to sell soup in his Ocean Avenue coffee shop. Despite then-mayor Ken White’s concerns and those of some councilmembers that changing the code would result in the influx of takeout food shops and create more litter in the streets, neither has materialized.

Laurell Hamilton Interview

I'm currently reading "Incubus Dreams",

and discovered an interview with LKH over on Amazon.

Lost Souls

Two lost souls have returned to us. Welcome "home", Debbye and LeeAnn!

At Least A Microorganism!

Let's get this girl up to at least a Multicellular Microorganism! Maybe even a Wiggly Worm!

I'm Angry

He's angry.

Must read, folks, must read. I can't just pick one bit to excerpt, because it all hits me right in the gut.

Two Kewl Things

The latest Red Ensign Standard, and a yummy Recipe Carnival (cheese stuffing!)!

To Watch, Or Not To Watch?

Since I hate debates anyway, I'm seriously thinking about not watching tonight. I especially dislike these town hall ones YUCK! With their "undecided voters" -- yeesh, right, pull the other one why don't you? "Undecided" like the guy NPR trotted out who turned out to have been a Kerry and DNC donor. And why are all the moderators always liberal MSM types? It would have been nice for a token attempt at balance to have someone from FNC moderate one. Anyway, back to the audience asking questions... the other thing is that these people almost always ask stupid questions, they never seem like they've studied any issues in depth, and that they got most of their info from Jay Leno's monologue. Okay, maybe this time it will be different, and I won't come away from it thinking that the questioners should be ashamed of themselves. Juuust maybe.

Nah.

A Bit Later: What was I saying? (via the mighty Allah)

That's So Sweet!

I just noticed CB gave me a link as her hostess down in her blog credits section.

What a nice cranky person she is!

And The Word Is...

we got an apartment! We went at lunch yesterday to look, and within the hour had done the paperwork and written out the deposit check. We can move in the 19th! The landlady loves cats, doesn't require a pet deposit, and said I can have all my cats with me -- she doesn't care. It's a large, garden setting type complex, pool, playground, all the units have a deck, and really large rooms wih huge closets, and a storage area. No lease, month to month. We can even grill/BBQ on our deck. The rent will be a bit of a squeeze, but worth it IMHO. I could even walk to work in a pinch, or if I'm feeling really motivated :) Oh, and all the apt's have their own small furnace and hot water heater. We have a corner unit, downstairs.

I can not tell you how relieved I am! and pretty happy the first potential landlady was so obnoxious! I'm not even sure why I called this place since it wasn't on my inital list, but something drew me back to the ad. I think God was looking over my shoulder.

Now, as a housewarming gift to me, I went and ordered some housewares off of my Amazon Wishlist. They had a deal going on, plus free shipping, so that made it easy [g] If you've been dying to know, my kitchen theme colour is blue! I think between what I stole from mum, and the stuff I got a few months back and this order, I have all the basics. Maybe next month I can get a few more things off the list. Still need to buy an air mattress, since I'm dumping my water bed, and a futon sofa for the living room, so we have something to sit on, and it will double as a guest bed. Oh, and a tablecloth for the outdoor plastic table that will now be my dining room table. Tea towels ... Dishcloths... Wooden spoons, spatula/bowl scraper, vaccum. Okay, maybe I'm not as set as I thought! Big surprise there! But soon, precious, soon!

RL Update

Still no news on the house in Utah since we changed lending companies from the evil conglomerate to a local one recccomended by our realtor -- so keep your fingers crossed.

On the apartment hunting side, I thought we had it nailed down yesterday, but when I called to arrange paperwork, deposit, etc... suddenly they want me to sign a years lease. I didn't want to do that. I said six months, she said she'd ask her husband, call back later. So, I call back, and she gets very aggressive and bossy about signing a year lease. That's an instant deal breaker for me. I react very badly when people try to browbeat me into doing something. Really, really bad.

Back to looking. I have an appointment to look at a place tomorrow at lunch. The landlady was really very nice, so I'm hopeful. More than I wanted to pay, but I'm resigned to rent bankrupting me.

Oh, we looked at a Victorian in Pacific Grove yesterday that had been turned into a triplex. I was sooooo tempted -- I dearly love old houses. But, they wanted an enormous security deposit, and the apartment was on the rundown side. The two didn't mix for me -- if you want nearly a $2000 deposit, the place had damn well better be pristine! Plus there was no furnace, so I would have had to use space heaters in all the rooms. Been there, done that, and at least in that place we had a wood stove!

Tonight is Townhall Meetup night, so I get an evening out!

Pray He Doesn't Alter Them Any Further . . .

This is one of the best explanations I've read of why the Star Wars DVDs are eeeeevil.

This part in particular is something I brought up when the "Phantom Menace" came out. The timing doesn't make sense!

.... INFINITELY WORSE is the end of the new DVD version of Return of the Jedi, which has been altered so that when Luke looks over at the ghosts of Obi-Wan Kenobi, Yoda, and Anakin Skywalker, the actor who played Anakin in the original trilogy, Sebastian Shaw, has been replaced by Hayden Christiansen, the actor who portrays Anakin in the prequels.

Again this seems a small matter, but on closer inspection it nearly unravels the entire Star Wars universe:

(1) Hayden Christiansen is 23 years old. When he filmed Return of the Jedi, Shaw was 78.

(2) This creates a timeline problem for Lucas: If Anakin Skywalker is in his early twenties when he becomes Darth Vader, and Star Wars introduces us to a Luke Skywalker who is also in his twenties, that means that (a) When Darth Vader dies, he's only in his forties; and (b) the reign of the evil Empire has been barely 20 years--not nearly long enough for all the drastic changes we're led to believe have happened since the Emperor took over. For example, after only 20 years, would people already be regarding Jedi knights and the Force as "old wizards" who practice a "hokey religion"?

(3) Making Anakin Skywalker younger runs counter to everything Star Wars had told us about his character. In Episode IV, Obi Wan tells Luke that Anakin was "the best star fighter pilot in the galaxy and a cunning warrior." In Jedi, Obi Wan says that Anakin was "a good man" before he turned to the Dark Side. To hear Obi Wan tell it, Anakin was a grown man when he suddenly turned evil, which is dramatically interesting. Now, Lucas is saying that Anakin was simply an adolescent who went bad. Not a particularly epic theme. After all, when people are young and irresponsible, they're young and irresponsible.

(4) Forget the epistemology: At the end of Jedi, Mark Hamill is 32 years old, so he's now looking on beatifically at his 23-year-old father. Even worse: At the end of Jedi, Luke removes Vader's mask and sees the face of his father for the first time. This face belongs to actor Sebastian Shaw. So when Hayden Christiansen appears as Anakin's young ghost, Luke wouldn't have any idea that this kid is his father.

(5) By inserting an actor from the prequels, Lucas has made it philosophically impossible to separate the original trilogy from his weaker and less interesting work. After seeing The Phantom Menace and Attack of the Clones, some Star Wars fans believed that they would be able to stick their heads in the sand and continue to enjoy the originals by pretending that the new installments never happened. George Lucas has now denied them even that cold comfort.

Polygamist Eye For The Monogamist Guy?

Polygamy laws expose our own hypocrisy.

Drum Roll Please!

We have a new member of the OnDragonsWing blog family. Please welcome my lovley guest blogger, Cranky Beach to the wonderful world of having your own blog.

Good Advice

From LW.

Say What?

A musical version of "The Last Starfighter"?!?!?

A musical version of the 1984 SF movie The Last Starfighter takes the boards in an off-Broadway production at New York's Storm Theatre, Oct. 15-30, Playbill Online reported. Lyricist-composer Skip Kennon (Time and Again) based the musical on Jonathan Betuel's screenplay, about a teenage video-game player enlisted to save the universe. Fred Landau wrote the libretto, the site reported. Storm artistic director Peter Dobbins directs.

The Last Starfighter, which starred Lance Guest and featured the final feature-film performance of Robert Preston, was notable for marking the first extensive use of computer animation in a movie.

The musical Starfighter will take the stage Monday through Saturday at 7:30 p.m. and Saturday at 2 p.m.

Sunday, Sunday

The movers never brought more boxes, so we've actually been lazy today. I've spent the day playing on the internet, watching FNC, and now I'm starting on my set of season four Stargate DVDs. (thanks, Roberta!) I'm also doing laundry, so I'm getting something done.

Nothing seems to be on PPV, so I need to rifle through the DVD box and see what movie i want to see again. Though I did buy "Cold Mountain" a few months back and have never watched it. Or I could watch "Pirates of the Caribbean" for the 634th time! I really wish the extended version of "Return of the King" was out. [pout]

Oh, and I'm trying to read Neil Stephenson's "Quicksilver", but I'm finding it really hard to get into. Does it get easier farther in?

Season one of Due South is freakin' $111!! I really want it (Nin's taped off the TV tapes finally died), so I decided to add it to my Wishlist, and was amazed at how much they were. Someone is going to have to really love me to get me those! Geepers....

Anything else I can ramble on about?

Nope.

Forever Knight, Season Two

Some great news on Forever Knight -- season two is being released on DVD in a few months. And, unlike the first season, this one will have some extras:

Commentary Tracks:

* Killer Instinct - Jim Parriott and Geraint Wyn Davies
* A More Permanent Hell - Nigel Bennett
* Curiouser & Curiouser - Nigel Bennett
* Crazy Love - Jim Parriott and Geraint Wyn Davies

"About the Show" featurette (20 mins)
Questions from the fans (7 mins)

Yay!! I love season two!

Absolute Suckage

Francis informs me that Roy Marsden has been replaced as Adam Dalgleish .

I am so bummed right now, you have no idea. I watched the series because of RM, and it even got me to read the books. (I'm not much into mysteries). RM is Adam and he's irreplaceable.

Harry & Sally

I finally saw the movie, "When Harry Met Sally" last night. It was amazing how many segments of the movie I'd already seen over the years even though I'd never actually seen the movie.

The Source

According to what I'm reading there is indeed going to be another Highlander movie. Heaven save us!

Yes, there's a remote sliver of possibility it could be good, but I'm not holding my breath.

(and if there's no Methos, I'm not interested)

(the only saving grace of "Endgame" [shudder] was Methos' very brief appearence)

Speculatrix

I've had a "Buffy" & "Angel" email list for awhile, but with the death of those two shows, the list kinda died along with it. So, today I changed it to an SF & F genre discussion list.

You can check it out here.

Strangers On My Flight

Via my liberal friend Jen, comes this ditty.

Something To Set Me Off On A Friday Evening

An Argh! inducing excerpt from this article:

.... Shortly before the debate began, Newsweek national editor Jon Meacham suggested on MSNBC that journalists are tired of Bush being in the lead, and so will try to narrow the race. Meacham foresaw "the possibility that President Bush has peaked about a month too early. Because we all need a narrative to change." Chris Matthews asked: "Is that your prediction?" Meacham replied: "I think it's possible that we're gonna be sitting around saying, 'Well you know Kerry really surprised us.' Because in a way the imperative is to change the story."

But remember, journalists aren't in favor of changing the story because it makes good copy. They're in favor of changing it because it gives their candidate a better chance of winning.

A Draw, But...

I think it will be seen as pretty much a draw, but when it came to being resolute and making me feel like this guy knows what it takes to protect me and my family, the President won, IMHO. Sure, Kerry speaks well, but I'm looking for a President, not an MC.

I don't know how Bush's evident annoyance at Kerry will play for the average Jane, but I saw it as a man who knows what's important and has to stand there and listen to Kerry prattle on, acting like a smug prima donna. So I thought the annoyance was just fine -- it was normal and human.

Some people have commented on how tired the President looked. I noticed it too. But I said to Nin that of course he looks tired! The Presidency takes a toll anyway, being a President in a war doubly so. I saw a man who has put body and soul into his duty to us as President. It just made me more certain that he is the man for the job now, and for the next four years.