I began practicing with my "new" GPS this afternoon. Well, let me clarify: I borrowed the device from my father and "practicing" isn't quite the correct term - more like learning how to turn it on and deciphering the lingo in the book. We have a large hayfield behind our house (what's left after they tore most of it up to put in a subdivision), so there I was, standing in the middle of it, entering and naming my waypoint, the GPS in one hand, the book in the other and Marty's leash hanging off of my pinky finger. I tried mapping my route as I walked from the field to the front of our yard, but Marty kept wanting to run circles around me, and when you're trying to plot a course and direction via satellite, spinning round and round ain't such a good idea. I did manage to figure out how to delete all of the waypoints my father had entered - they were interfering with what I was trying to do. I'm sure he won't mind. No, not at all. (I don't think he will since when he dropped the GPS off at my house he told me that he "never did figure out how to use it.")

Now the next step is to choose a cache from the Geocaching site, find some free time and someone to accompany me, and off I will go. I think I'll bring along my little digital camera to mark the occasion. Anyway, I'll let you all know when I do.

Timewasters from Filmwise:

Contest #14 - Trick or Treat - Movie characters with Halloween masks photoshopped onto their faces.
Invisibles #91 - 5 out of 8.
Invisibles #93 - Behind the Mike - 5 again.

Sir Ian McKellen has updated The White Book: he discusses the extended version of FoTR being released in November, voiceover work for The Two Towers and mentions how he is currently in Vancouver for X-Men. There are some great photos of him in what appears to be his current residence in Vancouver. I wish I could read the bottom of his t-shirt!

Toy Story 3.

Salon's Carina Chocano on last night's Sopranos. If you haven't seen it yet, don't read this - it's one huge spoiler.

My opinion -- hearing the opening song again was akin to coming across one of those sensory reminders, the smells or sounds that bring you back to a cherished place or experience, the return to something good. And it was good. I won't spoil anything for you, but the most prophetic line uttered in last night's episode was spoken by Carmela to Tony: "Everything comes to an end." This is not a good time for Tony or for either of his Families. And that bodes well for us as viewers. Bring it on!

'Scaper Stuff

• "I Am Farscape" - I'm sending mine out to Bonnie Hammer today. I'm going to ask my boss if I can make these available for handouts to customers at the store. Maybe this flyer, too.
  
• Farscape Weekly's excellent Cancellation FAQ.
  
• "The SciFi Channel - putting the psychotic in sci-fi."
  
• The Big Honchos at SciFi are meeting today. Maybe some news later?
  

Best Adult Film Title I Happened Upon Recently: The Sopornos

Holy Cow!

Twenty-five years ago today, on September 13, 1977, "Soap" premiered. According to teevee.org, TVLand will be airing a 10-hour "Soap" marathon, beginning tonight at 8:00 P.M. and concluding tomorrow morning at 6:00. Burt, Jessica, Benson, Mary, Chester...classic stuff. If you've never seen the show, this is your chance to see what all the fuss was about. I remember being one of the few girls in my high school class who was allowed to watch the show, because if its 'adult' themes. It's all very tame by today's standards - God, if they only knew then - but it's still just as funny. Inspired silliness, I guess. I'll watch just so I can see Burt snap his fingers and "disappear", see Chester walk around in his bandage/turban, believing he's Marlene Dietrich, and to watch Benson just shake his head at all of them. You can find descriptions of all the episodes that will air here. Just how many people tried to kill Peter Campbell?

image courtesy HBO

Hey! Sunday night at 9:00 P.M. Don't forget!!

Farscape Update

That's a tongue-twister, huh?

There haven't been any major developments in the Save Farscape campaign, but there are a few items of interest to report.

• Like I have, you can join the Save Farscape Mailing List at Yahoo Groups. I joined last night and already I've received 4 e-mails overnight.
  
• One of the e-mails I received contained helpful advice and a recommendation on who to contact with handwritten letters. If you would like a copy of the e-mail, contact me and I will forward it on to you.
  
• You can click here to see the ad placed in The Sydney Daily Telegraph, in .pdf form.
  
• Click here to read encouraging reports from two individuals who attended the rally in NYC yesterday.
  
• Finally, in response to seeing the ad in the Daily Telegraph, Farscape Producer and Director Andrew Prowse sent off this message to the Save Farscape campaigners:
  
  Anthony Simcoe (D'Argo) rushed into my office this morning waving The Daily Telegraph, "Look at this, look at this!". I looked and saw your ad, maybe a third of a page: "To the Farscape Cast and Crew". I copied it, handed it round to the post-production crew. Some smiled in appreciation, others shook their heads in disbelief, a couple looked a little red around the eyes: all were touched.
  We know Farscape is a special show; at its best a great show, and hope the hell other people think the same. We know we have fans out there who love what we do. But I don't think any of us could have imagined the passion; the strength and depth of support we've received over the last ten days. It makes us proud, and it makes us humble.
  We haven't given up yet, and neither should you.
  We believe in you too.
  
  Andrew Prowse
  PRODUCER & DIRECTOR
  
  
  
  

And now, in classic whiplash-style, I return you to our regular programming with this article: Why Farscape Is Worth Saving. Apparently, the online campaign to save Farscape has made the news at cnn.com and Headline News Hotwired, on television. Many fans were scheduled to attend a protest outside of the SciFi Channel's offices in Rockefeller Center this morning. I'll be on the lookout for any news stories on that. I've sent some e-mails, signed some petitions. Hopefully, I'll be able to shoot off a few letters tomorrow.

Close to the Surface

It still hurts too much, doesn't it? I knew that yesterday's anniversary would remind me of things I wouldn't want to be reminded of, would bring back all of the sadness; but I was surprised at how much it still hurt, how close to the surface all of those feelings still were and how little it would take to set off another crying jag. I can only imagine -- no, actually, I cannot imagine -- how emotionally devastating it all is for someone who was actually directly affected by the attacks. I don't know if I could bear it.

One year down.

"I wish none of this had happened."

"So do all who live to see such times, but that is not for them to decide. All you have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to you."

In memory of all who lost their lives on that terrible day, and those they left behind. God bless.

Comments are back, as you can see. If I bothered to read the updates at blogback, I would have anticipated this:

"My hosts have said that they will be making upgrades to the server that tecknik.net sits on next Tuesday, and they're expecting it to be unavailable for a few hours (late morning to mid afternoon GMT). Sorry about any trouble this causes."

My apologies as well.

Comments are Farked

For now. blogback is unavailable, meaning either the site is down for maintenance or this is an unscheduled interruption and the server crashed. Either way, it's out of my hands. I'll keep my peepers peeled and let you know whassahappenin' as soon as I know.

Gotta love that silly KMart Joe Boxer ad.

Oh, come on! How could that guy not know that he shot a three-inch nail through his eye socket (or whatever)??

What Was Lost



So, Farscape has been canceled after four seasons. I just don't get it. I mean, I get it - the show was very expensive and SciFi didn't want to pay the price. But you know what? In this case, you got what you paid for: an award-winning, innovative, intelligent, sexy, funny television program. And all of this in a science-fiction show, no less!

If you're a fan of the show and want to do what you can to keep the show on the air, at least for a fifth season, here's a page with contact information, link to a petition, press releases, etc. : Save Farscape. (Thanks, eip, for the link!)

Also, David Kemper, Richard Manning and Ben Browder called a special chat over the weekend to announce the cancellation and talk with fans. You can read the chat transcript here.

Farscape was (is) a consistent bright spot on the television landscape, which, if you ask me, is running out of bright spots. As its cancellation was being announced, Farscape was named one of the Best Hour Shows by teevee.org. The Vidiots, referring to the decision to cancel the show:

"If that decision stands, and no new network steps in to fill the void, it will be a crying shame. Television will not have just lost another silly sci-fi puppet show loved by the kids -- it will have lost one of the most complete and appealing science fiction shows of all time. And no flimsy award from a fly-by-night web site whose awards are orchestrated in some mysterious back room can ease that pain.

I couldn't have said it better myself. Crackers do matter.

Day Off

I wake up every morning now wondering if we've invaded Iraq overnight. Sheila and I watched "Three Kings" over the weekend, and I said to her, "The more things change, the more they stay the same, huh?" War with Iraq, another "George Bush", Saddam, starving refugees...(excellent movie, btw)

Speaking of waking up, I woke from an awful dream this morning. In the dream I worked for a local morning radio show, out of Hartford. For some reason, I was walking to work, normally a 45-minute drive, along I-84. As I got close to the city, I came across this woman who was playing with her dog and small child in the highway median. I watched as she gathered her child and things together into this small wooden sleigh, strapped a harness and reins onto the dog, slipped on the hood of her parka, stepped onto the back of the sleigh and away they went down a Hartford street. I was in town now, and it looked like it had snowed, but I wasn't sure. I found what I thought was the building I worked in; I took an elevator up to the top floor. I wandered into a room full of people who were seated in rows of chairs and sat down. The room didn't look or feel quite right, sort of crooked. Suddenly I saw the building outside the window falling toward us. It crashed onto us, and the building was collapsing all around, everything was black, and I was thinking "This is it, this is what it felt like..." Then I opened my eyes and realized I was safe in my sunny, bright bedroom.

Sweet.

"The (syndicated) X-Files" moves from fX to SciFi and TNT this fall. SciFi is asking viewers for their favorite eight episodes, and will air the 8 episodes with the most votes on two consecutive nights, Tuesday, October 1 and Wednesday, October 2, from 7-11 P.M.

I ran out of votes by Season 3.

Wondering when your favorite TV show will be returning this fall? Zap2it has gathered all of the premiere dates in one handy list, just for you.

Here's an idea for how to spend the day on September 11. Sounds like a good idea to me.

(registration required)

I'm going to think twice before ever letting anyone buy me a drink again.

"I can't tell you how healing it will be to once again see that footage of the smoldering Pentagon where my Nathan died."

The Onion asks, "Who Will Bring Closure to a Grieving Nation?" and hilariously cuts through the crap, as usual.

Oh, just chain me to my computer now and and get it over with.

(registration required)

The little eight-year-old boy who stole a truck and drove twenty miles in an effort to be reunited with is father was caught, but he escaped and managed to walk the remaining dozen or so miles to his father's house. Wow.

Daring, last-minute rescue! You may need some popcorn while reading this one.

What's Lance Bass going to do now that the Russians have given him the bootsky? Ted Nugent has a few ideas.

"I know what I believe. I will continue to articulate what I believe and what I believe—I believe what I believe is right."

From the mouth of our President, ladies and gentleman. Go read Slate's "The Complete Bushisms".

"Russian space officials said a Russian and a Belgian will be making the flight. In Bass' place on the trip will be a cargo container, they said."

Hehe.

Double Your Invisibles Pleasure!

Invisibles #90 is a special Double Issue, so you can do either twice as good or twice as bad as you usually do ;). I got 8 out of 16.

"Either it's a midget or I'm crazy and that's a little boy."

Eight-year-old foster child steals a pickup truck and drives 20 miles in an effort to return to his family. Resourceful little guy.

According to TeeVee.org, Ed is the biggest disappointment in television this year. I wouldn't know - I stopped watching it last year.

Anyone bother watching MTV's VMAs? I never do, but I wanted to catch the beginning, where Springsteen and the E Street band perform "The Rising", so I made sure I tracked that down in a rerun this weekend. The show had its usual moments of celebrity bad/outrageous behavior, or so I've read, but the best must have been Michael "Artist of the Millennium" Jackson.

It was a quiet, rainy holiday weekend here in Connecticut. I'm not complaining, though. I watched some old favorites on video - Notting Hill, Sense and Sensibility, Aliens - went out drinking for Sheila's birthday on Saturday night, baked her a cake, went out to dinner on Sunday night, and got some good naps in here and there. Nice and quiet. Besides, I'm so broke I can't afford to do much more!

Speaking of which, I begin a new part-time job tonight, down at a local video store franchise, from 5-11. Same shift tomorrow and Thursday nights, and 4-11 on Sunday. I'll continue to look for other things, but in the meantime, I need to start earning some money. At the very least, I'll get free movie rentals ;).

The one year anniversary of 9/11 is fast approaching and just about everyone in TV land has a special program dedicated to it. This NYTimes article reviews 2 anniversary specials and lists the others that will be airing today and tomorrow:

Frontline: Faith and Doubt at Ground Zero , on most PBS stations tonight.
The Day the Towers Fell , the History Channel, tonight at 9, Eastern and Pacific times; 8 Central.
Newsnow Special Report, MTV , tonight at 10, Eastern and Pacific times; 9 Central.
Caught in the Crossfire: Arab Americans in Wartime , on most PBS stations tomorrow night.
Inside Islam , the History Channel, tomorrow night at 9, Eastern and Pacific times; 8 Central.
Minute By Minute: The Attack On the Pentagon , A&E, tomorrow night at 10, Eastern and Pacific times; 9 Central.

The article mentions that there will be at least 30 more programs airing next week. The usual TV overkill. Here's a list of what's airing just on September 11th.

I know that some of the bunch will be worth watching, so as I come across reviews or lists of what's airing when, I'll pass it along to you.

(registration required for the NYTimes article)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SHEILA!

This has a Geek Quotient of staggering proportions, but it had me chuckling.

50 Reasons Why The Lord of The Rings Sucks.

(thanks theonering.net) (expect a pop-up ad)

Baseball players and owners avert an impending strike and save their greedy little asses from an expected fan revolt.

"Fortnum and Mason is looking for a chocolate buyer to travel the world, taste as much chocolate as possible and select only the best for its discerning customers." I think I found my next job.

Back and Rambling

What's today? Wednesday? Jesus, I was thinking all morning that it was Tuesday.

Got back from our camping trip mid-Monday, and it pretty much took me until this morning to recover. Sucks getting old. Last night was my first good night's sleep since before the weekend, and it worked wonders.

It was a great weekend and I will post pictures from the trip as soon as I get them developed. It was the first camping trip for the kids, and they loved every minute of it. Especially the dirt part. Our site was covered in what I wouldn't really categorize as sand, but more like ash. It absolutely coated anything it came into contact with. I haven't been that filthy in years.

We had very little wildlife interaction. The only encounter was with a skunk who was moseying around the perimeter of our site late one night. We apparently weren't all that interesting to him, so he just wandered off into the woods. There was an animal who had a bit more success - we suspect a squirrel - with looting our site. We came back from an outing to find an empty Hostess Donuts box on the ground. I half expected to spy a squirrel with a tell-tale powdered sugar mustache.

Holly and Krys turned me on to Geocaching and Letterboxing this weekend - we hunted down a cache and a letterbox in the vicinity of the campground. Lots of fun. And a great way to get some exercise. If I owned a GPS I would probably be out there right now, on the hunt. Maybe I can borrow my father's, now that his boat is out of commission...

Anyway, good to back. Sort of. Money worries have me a little bit on edge, so to speak, but I think things will start to fall into place soon enough.

A nice trip to the forest.

I'll be away until Monday. Going camping in Rhode Island with Mary, the kids, Holly and Krys. Have a good weekend!

Words escape me.

Dumb, Dumber, Dumbest and Astronomically Stupid. LOLOL

(thanks davezilla)

Robert Patrick will star in a new fX series, "Snitch." With a writer from "The Sopranos" and a director from "Six Feet Under", this show has quite the pedigree already. Hey, is R. W. Goodwin the same Bob Goodwin who was a producer on "The X-Files" for the first 5 seasons? Small world.

The 2002 TeeVee Awards. I don't watch most of the shows they recognize ("C.S.I.", "Alias"), but the awards are still fun to read. And Sarah Michelle Gellar get to split the Best Hour Actress prize. The awards include Best New Show, Best Hour Actress, Worst Hour Show, Worst Actresses, with more to come as the days go by.

Hey, I just found out that tomorrow night is the "summer season finale" of Farscape. According to Sci-Fi:

Watch the Season 4 summer finale of Farscape this SCI FI FRIDAY, August 23, at 10:00 p.m. and 12:00 a.m. ET/PT, after a new episode of Stargate SG-1. Brace yourself, because this summer finale is a shocker! Then mark your calendar: New episodes of Farscape will return in January of 2003!

January?? Frell!

I discover the very funny (and painfully true) Why They Hate Us weblog the week they decide to shut down. You know me, a woman with her finger on the pulse of the web.

This guy oughta put a smile on your face.

"It's like someone has taken my heart away." Poor Ozzy.

Finally

I broke down last night and sent copies of some vacation photos to many of you. Life being the way it is, I fixed the problem with the script on my photo page this morning. You can find photos from my most recent trip to Maine here, which includes some that did not go out in an e-mail. Enjoy!

PS There will probably be more at a later date, when I finally get around to developing my film

Fox will air all 24 episodes of "24" on Sunday, September 1 (Labor Day weekend). The marathon actually begins at midnight on Saturday, August 31. Sleep? Who needs to sleep?

A well-thought-out response from Slayernews.com to the persistent characterization of Tara's death on "Buffy" as homophobic and irresponsible. When articles began springing up about this on the Internet, I was frankly surprised. Granted, I speak from a heterosexual point of view, but I consider myself a fair- and open-minded person. In my opinion, Tara's death was good drama, plain and simple. Sad, yes, but expected in the Buffyverse, where no one is allowed to stay happy for very long.

(thanks, slayage.com)

"They Needed a Study for This?"

To make up for that nasty finger business, here's a remarkable AP photo of tall ships off of Portsmouth. Like a painting.

So, where the hell was I all weekend? Right here, but neglecting my site. I've been embroiled in an XPA Clue game, so watching old XF episodes has taken a lot of my time. I've also been job-hunting, a tedious process that leaves me averse to any sort of computer-use afterwards.

I scanned in a bunch of vacation pics and the page is ready to publish except for one major problem - the javascript I use for opening the images in their own window isn't working and I don't know why. I may have to just change them all to plain links to new pages if I can't figure this out soon. Either way, they'll be posted some time this week.

New Zealander Ted Matthews cut off his own gangrenous fingers. NOT for the squeamish. Like me. Good Lord, I feel sick.

BTW

I read four books while on vacation. All of them were mind-candy beach books, but I would recommend them to all. They were:



(I finished the Martha Grimes book in the sidebar before I left for vacation, but I haven't started anything new since I got back, so it stays.)

"I'm just at that special place, and I wanted to share it with you. Did you know that Elvis bought all the furniture in just 30 minutes?"

Eerily, Mulder's apartment number, 42, is also Elvis' age at his death. Coincidence? You decide.

Unless you live in a cave, you know that today is the 25th anniversary of Elvis' death. Twenty-five years dead and he made $37 million last year.

Anyway, since I'm a bit of a fan, I wanted to note the day with a few items.

Elvisnumberones.com - a marketing site for the new CD, "Elvis 30 #1 Hits", but cool, with a neat jukebox at the bottom of the page that plays snippets of his #1s, along with photos, games and profiles of Elvis as singer, actor, producer/arranger, etc. Many aspects of the Elvis persona are easy to make fun of, but it's nice to be reminded of how talented he really was.

I watched the last half of his '68 Comeback Special (One Night With You) on CMT last night. The program is notable not only for the music but also for Elvis at his sexiest. It's on again tonight at 6:00 P.M. EST. The show included some silly production numbers when I originally saw it quite a few years ago; I don't know if what CMT is airing includes those numbers or not since I only saw the last half. If it does, you can skip those - just watch the "unplugged" portion of the show. Elvis is electric. He would never again equal the performance, and he would later sink into self-parody, but this show captures the Elvis who deserved to be King.

Finally, Elvis on TV this month.

The extradition of Ira Einhorn, accused murderer and highly intelligent whack job.

Like I said the other day, the one thing the Osbournes have in abundance (besides money) is heart. What a good thing to do.

LOL! I think this dude really does have a dead squirrel on his head. You can read the full story here.

Runaway pig update.

Could this bit of news mean that Salon.com may survive?

(thanks, tvbarn)

Wow, I didn't think that such a blatant miscarriage of justice was possible in this day and age.

registration required

True Talent Test

"Are you feeling happy and challenged in your work life? Or are you counting the hours until you're "set free" each day? If your job seems like a prison sentence — or simply doesn't feel as meaningful as you'd like it to be, you're probably not utilizing your true talents at work."

How can an unemployed person resist?

My true talent?

Your true talent is mechanical ability

Given this talent, you're most likely curious about how things work and may enjoy tinkering with machines. Have you ever taken something apart just to see how it would fit back together? If this sounds like you, you may have earned the reputation around your household as a real Mr. or Ms. Fix-It.

At times, people like you can be both self-sufficient and a great help to others because when it's time to change a car's oil or tighten a leaky faucet, you can be just the right person to get the job done. No matter what kind of career opportunity you choose, chances are that you'll enjoy it most if it involves working with your hands or seeing the tangible results of your efforts.

They are so on the money. When I was about 4 years old, I took apart this little fire engine I had, the kind that you could sit in that had pedals and you could ride. Then I put it back together again. Maybe I should be going to mechanic's school.

Take the Talent Test yourself, and let me know what it says. You might want to have a paper and pen handy, since math makes an occasional appearance. Have fun!

A Nebraska bank is giving away money. Intentionally. Excuse me while I go look out the window to see if the sky is falling. Or maybe that fugitive pig will fly by.

Run, piggy, run!!

What is the most deadly of the natural disasters? If it's as hot where you are as it is where I am, you probably answered correctly. The heat wave:

"The most deadly heat wave in recent years occurred in Chicago over a week in July 1995, when temperatures hovered around 100 degrees. Then, over 50,000 people were left without electricity, nearly two dozen hospitals closed their doors to new patients, ambulances lined up around the block waiting to drop off victims, and the county buried 68 people in a 160-foot-long trench. Though there was some argument over numbers, scientists now say that 739 people died that week.

For context, the great Chicago fire of 1871 killed half that many. The San Francisco earthquake of 1989 killed 62, and Hurricane Andrew in 1992 killed 26."

registration required

This story about Adam Ant dressing up like a cowboy is very funny, but I think they're missing the bigger picture here.

Adam Ant -- Truman Capote -- separated at birth?

Dude looks like a lady.

Tuesday, right?

It was one of those mornings. I was up relatively early in order to get down to the employment agency and finalize my application for substitute teaching and begin my orientation. My apartment was like an obstacle course, with some sort of mishap around every corner.

I try to get online while eating my cereal (no, I didn't spill it, although I don't know why not), and got a DNS error no matter what site I tried to access. Also couldn't get to my mail server. OK.

I go into my bedroom to get dressed and find that one of the cats, Winnie, has just taken a ride on the Vomitron, puking all over my bed and floor.

After I clean up that mess, I realize I need to close any open windows and put the fans on exhaust to keep the heat of the day out. The only open window is in my bedroom. I reach behind the curtain without thinking and pull the window down. Right on top of my cactus. Not only did I spill the gravel/sand from the pot all over the floor, I managed to stick myself with the cactus needles, a couple of which are still in the palm of my hand.

Finally, on my way out the door, I pick up my soda can to take one last sip -- it's not my soda can, it's an old one, flat, warm, GROSS. As I jerk it away from my mouth...Yep, you got it, I dripped Diet Coke down the front of my white shirt. No time to change, though.

I make it alive to the truck, and as I'm about to pull out of the driveway, I realize that I forgot to put my watch on. I contemplated returning to the house to get it, but only briefly. I was not going to tempt fate by going through that door again.

Luckily, the application process and orientation went well. I'm back now and no mishaps so far...

Filmwise Fun

The boyz at Filmwise have a new contest: Barbie and Ken Go to the Movies. (Well, he's actually a Justin Timberlake doll, but what's the difference, really?) And there are loads of Invisibles quizzes to catch up on. Off I go to waste some time!

Minor league baseball team has a James Traficant Day. Otherwise known as, "Wear A Dead Squirrel On Your Head And Get In Free".

Alright, I admit it - I watched it. The first episode only. I haven't seen last night's episode, the second of the series, and I'm not sure I want to. Anna Nicole Smith is just not interesting enough to be funny or, well, interesting. She's just pathetic. Why I don't find Ozzy Osbourne pathetic, I'm not sure; maybe it's because he at least has/had talent and is surrounded by people he loves and who love him. Smith is just a zaftig caricature of a caricature - the brainless blonde bombshell and her remora-like entourage. And watching her slurring her way through portions of the show, obviously either high as a kite or, just as likely, faking it, makes me uncomfortable. And so I'll probably watch it again, lol.

A couple of articles on the show:

Slate article.
Salon article.

One DVD to rule them all.



I got my "Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring" DVD last Thursday. I was a bit peeved because I pre-ordered it from Amazon and it came 2 days later than the official release date and was $2 more expensive than what was selling at Wal-Mart, but my irritation faded as soon as I had it in my grubby little hands. The movie makes the transition to the small screen quite well, a testament to its depth; underneath the sweeping landscapes and epic action sequences that leap out at you in the theater there are the characters and their relationships, captured just as exquisitely as the external Middle Earth. You all need to get this for your home collection. If you can wait, the DVD being released in November will be the theatrical version plus 30 minutes of additional footage that was cut for time.

An afternoon spent with Frodo, Gandalf and the gang may be just what I need today.

Back to School

I really have been neglecting you, haven't I? Sorry about that.

After the family troubles subsided later in the week, my social life picked up. I had a party on Saturday afternoon/evening, then it was out drinking on Saturday night. On Sunday, a baby shower in morning/early afternoon and then a christening party/picnic. I'm pooped.

As far as the career (or lack of it), is concerned, I've decided to look into substitute teaching in area school systems. The program is run through an employment agency, Kelly Services, and you can choose assignments via an online database. I picked up the paperwork on Friday and went down to my town's police station this morning to be fingerprinted for the background check. See:



Tomorrow I'll return to Kelly for the interview/orientation process. School begins Aug 26 in some towns - wish me luck!

I have a lot to catch up on, and fill you in on, but for now I'm going to go outside and sit and read and enjoy the beautiful day. Back later...

"Friendly match", huh?

Without further ado...

Let's start things off with a bang.

Vin Diesel is hot.

Amen, sister.

(It's the voice, by-the-way. And the arms.)

Not Quite Back

Maine was wonderful, as usual. But real life has asserted itself upon my return, in a big way, and I'm afraid blogging is way down on my list of priorities at the moment. I'll try to post what I can, when I can. In the meantime, a quick pic for you:


view from the house at low tide

Hiatus

You'll all have to live without the insightful commentary and hilarity that is thisigina.com for the next two weeks. I'm leaving tomorrow morning at the crack of dawn for Maine, and I won't be back in town until Sunday, August 3. Posts should resume sometime soon thereafter.

Have a good 2 weeks, everyone. Try not to miss me too much ;).

Yodel-ay-ee-oo!

...it looks as though "Connie Chung Tonight" is well on its way to becoming CNN's first breakout comedy hit."

I was scowling after reading the list of Emmy nominations, but this put a smile on my face: A small Vermont town puts out a male nudie calendar, with proceeds to go to charity.

WARNING: There is a photo!

Emmy Schmemmy

The list is out. While I'm happy for some of my other favorites ("24", "Six Feet Under" and the ubiquitous "The West Wing"), I am astonished that Buffy's "Once More With Feeling" was virtually ignored, receiving only one nomination, for Outstanding Musical Direction. Here are the nominations for "Buffy the Vampire Slayer":

Outstanding Hairstyling for a Series
Outstanding Makeup for a Series (Non-Prosthetic)
Outstanding Makeup for a Series (Prosthetic)
Outstanding Music Direction (for "Once More With Feeling")

I fear that "Buffy", and creator Joss Whedon, will never get the recognition they deserve.

Damn, it's hotter than Dick's hatband out there. Makes packing for my trip that much more enjoyable.

Tom Shales' review of Robin Williams HBO show. I agree with him on all counts, and the "frantic account of how and why a sadistic Scotsman invented golf" was one of my favorite parts. I think I'll tape it on Thursday night so I can share with the rest of the crowd in Maine.

My birthday card from Hannah and Zachary. Note the "Happy Birthday" sign, balloons, birthday cake, and me.

Dude! Rock 'n Roll Fantasy Camp! Awesome.

(thanks, usr/bin/girl)

I saw an ad on HBO last night for the season premiere of The Sopranos -- September 15. It's been so long since the end of last season, I'm going to have to pull out my tapes to catch up. David Chase has said that the focus of the new season will be Tony and Carmela's marriage.. I'm very excited about that. The show was always at its best when it stuck to Tony and the women in his life.

Speaking of HBO, we caught the live Robin Williams show last night. Make every effort to see this - it's worth it.

*yawn*

Good morning. Monday. The start of another week. Or in my case, just the day after yesterday, and the one before tomorrow.

I'm feeling sort of oogy this morning. I had a great deal of trouble falling asleep last night; the last time I looked at the clock it ws 4:00 A.M., and I was still awake for a while after that. I would still be sleeping now, but our landlord called at 7:50 A.M. to let us know that her son and his friend would be coming by to water seal the deck. They arrived a few minutes later and I helped to take all the furniture, plants, etc. out of their way. And I warned them about the bees.

Anyway, after less than 4 hours of sleep I feel hungover, but denied the good time that usually makes the hangover worth it. And since I had a real hangover yesterday, I kind of wanted to feel better today.

I hope you all had a good weekend. My birthday sort of extended into Saturday, which was nice. Sheila and I drove out to Rhode Island to spend the day with Mary, the kids, and our mother. Traffic was atrocious, so we didn't get back here until 8:00 P.M., which gave us just about an hour before we had to freshen up and head out to Anna Liffey's for some live music and birthday beer.

Now I find myself getting ready for my vacation - 2 weeks up at our house in Maine. The first week, Marty and I will have the place to ourselves; then the rest of the gang arrives on the 26/27th, including my brother Tommy, two of his friends, Sheila, Mary, Craig and the kids. Packed house! I'm really looking forward to it, though. I need a break from all of this rest and relaxation.

Seven-Eleven is cool.

Who knew they really lived in hedges?

ROR!

OK, I found what I want for my birthday! LOL!

"A cat stuck for weeks inside the wall of a home after getting caught up in a remodeling project has been found and reunited with its owners."