Month: January 2009

Ellen Page Film Festival

Finally got around to seeing last year’s independent movie that could, Juno. Ranks right up there with yesterday’s Henry Poole Is Here flick, quirky character navigates tricky life problem while surrounded by a circle of quirky friends/family to satisfyingly happy ending to a folksy acoustic soundtrack. Ellen Page is nicely cast as the protagonist, but no 16-year old is that smart or worldly.

Unless of course she a 17-year old Vanessa Wetherhold, daughter of an English Professor in the movie Smart People. I’ve had this movie in my rental queue for awhile now, but the other day it got moved into the Watch It Now category and while Donna watched something on the tube I watched it on the laptop. Some folks compare it to Sideways in tone, mostly I think because of Thomas Hayden Church, I didn’t see it in anything other than his similar sort of loose cannon with a purpose shtick. I enjoyed the movie and don’t regret the hour and a half I spent with it, but it is another one that I can’t recommend to anyone I know because I don’t know anyone else who likes this type of movie.

I do enjoy “independent style” movies, but after this weekend I think I need a dose of good ol’ Hollywood style unreality. Maybe I need to move The Dark Knight to the top of the queue.

Started up, still up.
Miata Top Transitions since 10/24/08: 102

Uninspired

Today was a rainy day, just right for recovering from the flu and watching movies. First we watched Burn After Reading (or was it Burn Before Reading?) and somehow A-List writer/directors with an A-List cast somehow managed to produce a B-List movie. It was not bad, it was good, but it was not inspired like Fargo or The Big Lebowski.

The second movie was Henry Poole Is Here and I’m not really sure of what to make of this movie. I absolutely can’t think of anyone I could possibly recommend this movie to, but not because it was an awful movie, it was actually pretty good. It starts quirky, runs to questions of religion and faith, then somehow turns into a happy ending romance.

The Miss America pageant (or is it the Miss USA pageant?) is on TLC (The Learning Channel?) this evening and somehow 20-odd nicely proportioned, finely tanned women in black bikinis wearing high heels came off as unattractive.

Started down, went up, still up.
Miata Top Transitions since 10/24/08: 102

I Need A Cool Code Name

During one of the episodes of TDTVS on Wednesday night, Sayid is taking Hurley to a safe house (which turns out to be just the opposite) and they are having a conversation. I don’t remember exactly what was said, but it went a little like this:

Sayid: I’m not taking any risks after Bentham died.
Hurley: You mean Locke.
Sayid: ..Yes, I mean Locke.
Hurley: I need a cool code name.

I think this would be a cool little applet to put on the ABC Lost site, sort of like the Sawyer’s Nickname Generator. The writers and producers are fond of creating characters who names have a hidden meaning relating to philosophers, scholars and writers. John Locke is actually the name of a 17th-century philosopher, so when they made up a pseudonym for him to come back to the world from the island, they gave him the name of a 19th-century philosopher, Jeremy Bentham.

So in that spirit, since I did so well in algebra in high school and am into computer stuff, my Cool Code Name™ is George Boole.

Started up, went down, still down.
Miata Top Transitions since 10/24/08: 101

It’s Here

Season 5 of TDTVS starts tonight. I was so excited that I couldn’t go to work today, I had to stay home under sedation. Well, aspirin and antihistamines. I’ve got the flu or something, sore throat, runny nose, body aches, you know the drill. Hope I can stay awake until 11 to watch both episodes…

Started up, still up.
Miata Top Transitions since 10/24/08: 100

Big Snow Storm Covers Aiken!

Not really, more like persistent flurries dust us all day.

It was snowing lightly on the drive into work and once it became light, every time I passed a window or on our three shortened walks around the parking lot at break times there were widely scattered flakes fluttering to the ground. Heck at 4 o’clock quitting time the sun was shining, but there were still sporadic flakes tumbling down. But because our temperatures had not been cold enough for long enough nothing stuck, not even on the grass.

Started up, still up.
Miata Top Transitions since 10/24/08: 100

How Cold Is It?

60 above zero:
Floridians turn on the heat.
People in Minnesota plant gardens.

50 above zero:
Californians shiver uncontrollably.
People in Duluth sunbathe.

40 above zero:
Italian & English cars won’t start.
People in Wisconsin drive with the windows down.

32 above zero:
Distilled water freezes.
The water in Bemidji gets thicker.

20 above zero:
Floridians don coats, thermal underwear, gloves, wool hats.
People in Michigan throw on a flannel shirt.

15 above zero:
New York landlords finally turn up the heat.
People in Minnesota have the last cookout before it gets cold.

Zero:
People in Miami all die.
Wisconsins close the windows.

10 below zero:
Californians fly away to Mexico
People in Minnesota get out their winter coats.

25 below zero:
Hollywood disintegrates.
The Girl Scouts in Michigan are selling cookies door to door.

40 below zero:
Washington DC runs out of hot air.
People in Minnesota let the dogs sleep indoors.

100 below zero:
Santa Claus abandons the North Pole.
Wisconsins get upset because they can’t start the Mini-Van.

460 below zero:
ALL atomic motion stops (absolute zero on the Kelvin scale.)
People in Michigan start saying…”Cold ’nuff fer ya?”

500 below zero:
Hell freezes over.
Minnesota public schools will open 2 hours late.

This came from a fellow MMC’r who read it aloud to the Club when we gathered this last Saturday morning for breakfast on what has been the coldest day here all winter (so far) and Minnesotans had that last cookout.

I Need More Time

At work the password required for network access is good for 45 days and when you get down to 5 days left it will start reminding you each time you log in that your password is going to expire in “X Days.” ASCO also uses an AS400 for its business systems software and it needs a separate password from the one you need for the PC network. The AS400 password is only good for 28 days, that is not too bad, but the annoying thing is that it starts to remind your password will expire at the 14 day mark.

Why don’t they just go ahead and start reminding you when you get down to say…27 days left.

Started up, still up.
Miata Top Transitions since 10/24/08: 100