Life of Jim #1

That really happened to me at work today. [Click for a better picture.]

Podcasts and Upcoming Movies

Lately, I've been listening to podcasts during my nearly 3 hours of commute each day. It makes the trip go much faster than turning on the radio and hoping the hour-and-a-half one way trip shrinks down to something more manageable. If you're not familiar with them, podcasts are audio shows, usually produced on a regular basis, that you can listen to on an iPod or mp3 player. Mostly I've been listening to comics podcasts (The Acme Comics Dollar Bin is the best, by far), but the geek in me has really been enjoying Grammar Girl's 2-10 minute discussions on, well, grammar.

Anyway, I downloaded a Buffy the Vampire Slayer-related podcast the other day, and found out about a bunch of interesting films that Sarah Michelle Gellar will be involved in over the next year.

Of course, I knew about Happily N'ever After (out now). I'm struggling with whether or not to see it before I take my four-year-old, Julianna. It's PG, and if it's at all Shrek-like, it could have some humor that, in my opinion, is a little too old for children that young. (Have you seen Shrek 2? Call me old-fashioned, but I don't need to answer questions like, "Why is Pinocchio wearing girl's panties?") Plus, it's got Andy Dick and George Carlin. Not exactly kid-friendly.

Because of its comics history, I had already been following Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (out in March).

Also, Richard Kelly (creator of Donnie Darko, one of my favorite films of all time) is following that with Southland Tales, to be released this year.

What I didn't know, is that Gellar (or SMG, as all the Buffy-related sites refer to her) is also starring in an interesting film called The Air I Breathe. She plays Sorrow, opposite Forrest Whitaker, Kevin Bacon, and Brendan Frasier, who play Love, Pleasure, and Happiness, respectively. It's based on a Chinese proverb that breaks life down into those four emotional cornerstones. Sounds interesting. Maybe it'll come to Florence. (It's a May release, according to IMDB.)

The only reason I picked up on this next one is because I remember Krista reading The Girl's Guide to Hunting and Fishing. That will be adapted into the film Suburban Girl, to be released later this year. Why do they change names like that? It's already got a great name, and as the podcaster mentioned, pretty widely recognizable from the book's popularity.

And finally, the most exciting news. She'll also be starring in an adaptation of American McGee's Alice, which is one of the most interesting video games I've ever played. It is, of course, based Lewis Carroll's Alice in Wonderland, but takes place after that story. After Alice returns from Wonderland, her father and mother die in a fire, and she lands in an asylum. She ends up returning to Wonderland, only to find that it's become a much darker place and she determines to help set things back to normal. Or at least what constitutes normal in Wonderland. According to IMDB, this one should be hitting the theaters in July.

I can't wait!

Miracles?

CNN recently ran a story about a man who was miraculously healed of (legal) blindness.

Soon to be explained away by Scientists, Atheists, and Christians Who Have Proven Beyond a Reasonable Doubt That Miracles No Longer Exist.

I'm Sorry, Max

Many of the people reading this probably know we are (well, rather, my wife is) expecting in early March.

His name will be James Maxwell.

We'll be calling him Max.

I'm glad we don't live anywhere near New York.

Max has maximum appeal among dog names
Thu Dec 28, 2006 9:40am ET

NEW YORK (Reuters Life!) - If you're in a New York City park and tell your dog Max to fetch, you might find a strange pooch retrieving your ball.

That's because Max was the top dog name in New York in 2005, according to the city Health Department.

The name Max was engraved on 1,228 dog licenses of the 101,274 issued last year, the department said.

All top five names remained the same as in 2004 -- Max, followed by Lucky, Princess, Rocky and Buddy.

Mixed breeds outnumbered any other variety, with 7,374 licensed in 2005, the department said. More Labrador retrievers were licensed than any other breed, followed by pit bulls, Shih Tzus and German Shepherds.

All dogs must be licensed and have a tag on their collars while in public, according to state law. However, the health department estimates only a fifth of the city's dogs are licensed.

I'm glad we didn't name Julianna "Princess".

The Sullying of a Classic

Well, last year I was able to watch the atrocious 2001 sequel to Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer: Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer and the Island of Misfit Toys.

This year, I followed it up with another studio decision to trash one of my fondest childhood memories, The Year Without a Santa Clause.

Alternate title: What Happens When Chris Kattan, Eddie Griffin, Ethan Suplee, John Goodman, Carol Kane, Michael McKean and Delta Burke All Lose a Bet?

I guess it's technically not a re-make, both being based on a 1956 book, but there's enough in there to recall the wonderful 1974 TV special.

This version, however, is horrible. It gets increasingly difficult in a movie like this to point out what was bad. Poor writing, over-acting, bad directing. You name it, this film fails on every level. I'm wondering what could have convinced some of these actors (particularly the ones who are working now) to be involved in this. Maybe blackmail was involved.

Plus, I don't know if my Comcast ratings were off, but it's listed as "TV G". But this movie is so bad, I can't see it geared toward adults. On the other hand, some references should have pulled it out of "G". I thought a reference to South Park was odd, but it was just a reference. But then Jingle accuses Jangle of attempting a "booty call" and Heat Miser calls Snow Miser a "kiss ass". Is that "G"-rated stuff? Not to mention the sexy female dancers that back up the Miser Brothers. Or the clips of violent video games that are billed as the cool new Christmas presents. Whoever gives these programs their ratings must be sleeping on the job.

Don't see this film. Even for free (it was recently televised). I feel really bad for all the folks who rented this. I was at the movie store last weekend, and all the copies of this film were gone. It's not worth $3.75 plus the time wasted in viewing.

Talent, or Technology?

Probably both. Even if you're not a fan of stop motion, check out this amazing video.

Higher Grounds Comedy

Last night was another night of Higher Grounds at Crosspoint Church. Some amazing music - I'll have to get names of some of the performers. Singing. Guitars. Violins, even. Meredith Wallace sang an amazing rendition of Gordon Lightfoot's Song for a Winter's Night.

What was different last night was that Jerry Ross did some stand up comedy.

And it was hilarious. Talking about Christmas, taking kids to public bathrooms, Hot Pockets. I about fell out of my chair laughing. Looking forward to more next time.

Commentary

Part of the reason this blog is named what it is, is that Krista says I've got a commentary on everything.

Well, here goes (please let me warn you that this is rated N for Negative).

What is this, the new El Camino? The Subaru Baja wins the ugliest car of the year award.

File under: Wouldn't Have Believed It If I Hadn't Seen It With My Own Two Eyes. It's a Hummer actually doing something. I didn't think they were allowed to haul anything but one or two people at a time.

Is this something you're supposed to get? If so, I don't think I do. (Silence is golden, but duct tape is silver.)

And do not try this. I loved their Halloween Candy Corn Soda, but their Christmas Candy Cane Soda taste like Peppermint Schnapps without the Peppermint. Blecch.

And, finally, the obligatory church sign. "Contentment is a pearl of great price." If you don't know the context (one of the parables of Jesus), it looks like they're saying Contentment Is Great Wealth. I think they're actually trying to say that Contentment is Finding God, but that's not real obvious.

There, maybe I got that out of my system. Thanks for listening.

Merry Christmas to Me

If anyone out there is still trying to find me the perfect Christmas present, here's something I found on eBay that you can get me:

Superman III Evil Superman Costume

Into the Fog

Quote of the Day
"The greater the trust, the greater the betrayal."
-Lex Luthor, Smallville

Signs of What?

So I've been holding out on the pictures. I guess I've just been a little too busy to upload. Or something. Here's some I took a few weeks ago.



Saw this ladder (I think it's a ladder) on the way home the other night. It took me a while to figure out what it said. I think it's much easier with a little computer magic.

Not for humans? Does that mean it's for something else? Maybe it's an alien ladder? Weird. I keep thinking about that old Twilight Zone, To Serve Man. (You know, the one with the cookbook?)

Saw this interesting juxtaposition, too.

Just so you know Jimmy's is a "Gentlemen's Club" (though, from what I hear, that's quite generous; not that I have any first-hand knowledge). I thought it interesting to find the church sign right outside. I wonder if it's made anyone think twice about walking in...

And then finally, more signs of the end of the world? Another night driving into the darkness. (This was before the time change.)

I thought I was in Denver driving into the mountains.

That night this flock of birds was flying back and forth over the road in Athens. It was all pretty creepy.

Stranger Than Will Ferrell

Actually got to go to the movies over the holiday weekend. Go see Stranger Than Fiction. It's excellent. It's a lot of fun. It's hilarious. It's intelligent. It's the kind of movie you want to see again to see what you've missed. Ferrell plays against type. His belly doesn't hang out, he doesn't run around in his underwear. He doesn't have a cowbell. So don't go expecting to see that. Just go see it.

On the other hand, don't go see Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause. If I remember correctly, I laughed a lot more in RV. Which is saying a lot.

Expensive Jewelry

I never thought I'd be going jewelry shopping with my daughter, but I'd been wanting to get a beaded bracelet ever since the one broke that Krista brought me back from Mexico. And Julianna, well, she likes girly stuff. We both picked out something we liked yesterday when we were out shopping.


Well, not so much "picked", as "had to take what came out of the machine" after we put in our fifty cents. But I thought it turned out pretty well.

Are You From Michigan?

Ok; I almost never take these internet quizzes, and I never post them, but this one was so dead on, it was freaky. So I figured I had to. Plus, it'd be interesting to see how all my southern friends score.

What American accent do you have? Your Result: The Inland North You may think you speak "Standard English straight out of the dictionary" but when you step away from the Great Lakes you get asked annoying questions like "Are you from Wisconsin?" or "Are you from Chicago?" Chances are you call carbonated drinks "pop."
The Midland
The Northeast
Philadelphia
The South
The West
Boston
North Central
What American accent do you have? Take More Quizzes

I am from Michigan (in the midst of the Great Lakes, of course), and the only reason I don't call it "pop" (anymore) is because I've spent nearly half my life outside of Michigan learning to call it "soda" (Baltimore) or "coke" (the South).

Plus, I do think my English is pretty darn good...

*sigh*

I think I better have a talk with Krista about what kind of talks she's been having with our four-year-old, Julianna.

With that, I'll leave you with a quote that I overheard tonight as we were decorating the tree.

Quote of the Day

Mommy, is Wonder Woman a hoochie mama? Look how she's dressed.

-Julianna