Renee Zellweger and Kenny Chesney Split: "In court papers filed Wednesday, Zellweger listed 'fraud' as the reason for the breakup but did not elaborate."

Hmm, it looks like those rumors about Kenny might just be true.

Salon's Emmy Ballot

"Vote for TV's best -- and worst -- on our modified ballot, where the nominees vie against those who deserved to win, and those who really don't."

(requires viewing of ad for one day pass)

My choices:

Comedy - Arrested Development
Drama - Deadwood
Lead Actor/Comedy - Tony Shalhoub, Monk
Lead Actor/Drama - Ian McShane, Deadwood
Lead Actress/Comedy - Cheryl Hines, Curb Your Enthusiasm (because she's the only one I've seen)
Lead Actress/Drama - Mary McDonnell, Battlestar Galactica
Supp Actor/Comedy - David Cross, Arrested Development
Supp Actor/Drama - Terry O'Quinn, LOST
Supp Actress/Comedy - Jessica Walter, Arrested Development
Supp Actress/Drama - Katee Sackhoff, Battlestar Galactica
Miniseries - The 4400, just because I had to pick something - I haven't seen any of the choices
Variety/Music/Comedy - The Daily Show
Animated - Futurama
Reality - Antiques Roadshow, because I don't do reality shows
Reality/Competition - The Amazing Race
Worst Show - The Swan

How about your choices?

The kindness of strangers.

I wish I could do more.

Interdictor passes on a message from one Robert LeBlanc: "I will tell you that I would probably disagree with most of the people that still need to be saved on political, social, and cultural values. However, it must be noted that these people love thier friends and families like I do, desire to live like I do, and care for their respective communities (I was even amazed at the site of seemingly young and poor black people caring for sickly and seemingly well-to-do white people and tourists still needing evacuation from New Orleans' downtown area) the same way I care for mine.

Eight people in particular who stood out during our rescue and whose stories deserve to be told..."

I don't know who Robert LeBlanc is, but I thank him for sharing his story with us.

Bush: 'I take responsibility': "'Katrina exposed serious problems in our response capability at all levels of government, and to the extent that the federal government didn't fully do its job right, I take responsibility.'"

I am speechless.

German brews world's strongest beer: "'People will only be able to drink two or three glasses, otherwise they'll drop like flies,' he said."

Whoa!

Fall TV. It's that time of year again.

the futon critic's Fall TV grid, for those of you, like me, who are trying to figure out when our favorite shows are premiering and what nights they'll be on (until they start moving them around once a month!). Here's mini-grid of the shows I'll be watching (or trying to):

Sunday

9:00 HBO Dramas (ROME, Deadwood, Sopranos) (they alternate - ROME is currently playing)

Monday

8:00 Arrested Development (FOX) 9/19
9:00 24 (FOX) (2006)

Tuesday

8:00 American Idol (FOX) (2006)
9:00 My Name Is Earl (NBC) 9/20

Wednesday

9:00 LOST (ABC) 9/21, Veronica Mars (UPN) 9/28

Thursday

8:00 Alias (ABC) 9/29
9:00 CSI (CBS) 9/22, Night Stalker (ABC) 9/29, MXC (Spike) 10/6

Friday

10:00 Battlestar Galactica (SciFi) (season 2 currently in progress)

The Wednesday night conflict between LOST and VM is a problem, but I haven't started VM yet and can always turn to the DVDs if recording it becomes too much of a pain. Thursday night, however...I think Night Stalker may get dumped in favor of the other 2. Tuesday may get sacrificed altogether since neither of those shows is really screaming "watch me" and I could use a night off. For Playstation.

Drive-Thru Reviews

The Grudge - Pretty good. It had some honestly scary moments, and SMG is not in it nearly as much as the trailers would have you believe. Gave me some major heebeejeebees.

Arrested Development - I watched the first disc of season 1 last night and I can't wait to get to disc 2 tonight. IMO, probably the best half-hour comedy, maybe ever, and yes, I'm including Seinfeld, Friends, etc.

Shaun of the Dead - yes, I've reviewed this already, but I watched it again this weekend and I thought I'd remind you all that YOU HAVE TO SEE THIS MOVIE.

For the first time in its 2 terms, the Bush administration comes close to actually admitting it made a mistake - without actually admitting it:

FEMA Chief Relieved of Katrina Duties - Yahoo!

(I left the "Yahoo!" on the end since it seemed to fit)

I wonder if Bush/Rove thinks this will be enough to win back some percentage points? Probably.

"That split second of terror frozen onto the face of someone famous as they come to grips with their powerlessness against something as elemental as gravity makes us feel somewhat better about our own relatively meaningless lives. "

SuperMarty.

SuperMarty.
Originally uploaded by gina64.

Faster than a speeding toddler. More powerful than a squeaky toy. Able to leap...onto the couch and that's about it.

But when you're this cute, that's enough.

Post-Apocalyptic New Orleans.

So long, little buddy.

Wildflower.

Wildflower.
Originally uploaded by gina64.

Tense days lead to reunion of kids and their moms: "In the chaos that was Causeway Boulevard, this group of evacuees stood out: a 6-year-old boy walking down the road, holding a 5-month-old, surrounded by five toddlers who followed him around as if he were their leader. "

Very nice story, but I cannot let the kids' names pass without making a snide comment: "He said the 5-month-old was his brother, Darynael, and that two others were his cousins, Tyreek and Zoria."

Are those totally sci-fi names, or what? Wow!

"You are getting very sleepy...very sleepy...we're here to help you...everything will be alright...L Ron Hubbard is God...we're all descended from aliens...everything will be alright."

Yes, that's unfair, I know, but doesn't it look like he's putting the guy under a spell?

Shift Change

"We're expecting the new team to arrive in the next hour. Man are they in for a shock. "

There will be a new crew coming in to take over at Interdictor, giving the guys who are there a much deserved break. Thanks to you all for your dedication. I feel like I know so much more of the real story than I would if I had just relied on the major news outlets. And I've got that live webcam feed up on my screen at home all the time.

Drive-Thru Reviews

Kung Fu Hustle - Like nothing I've ever seen before. Combines Crouching Tiger, The Matrix and Looney Tunes and succeeds.

Children of Beslan - Chronicles the taking of Beslan's School #1 one year ago by Chechen rebels and is recounted entirely by children who survived. Their intelligence and emotional maturity is astounding. The loss of their innocence is heartbreaking. A young girl remembered how she prayed to God to "save us all, please. ... He saved those he could manage to save, and the ones he couldn't, he kept with him. He kept the best. The most beautiful ones died." I am amazed at the lengths we will go to hurt one another.

"Well, people, I'm not sure how much longer we're going to have internet."

Interdictor may be off-line in a few hours. Their ISP was running out of fuel and a scheduled delivery failed to happen last night and this morning. I hope they get their delivery in time. Reading what is really going on instead of hearing it all filtered through the mainstream media has been invaluable. Last night I was able to connect to a live video feed they have set up from one of their windows just in time to see a convoy of buses, school and commercial, heading up the long boulevard below. I felt so relieved to see something actually getting done. Imagine how they felt.

Good luck with the fuel, guys. You're doing important work.

I'm not sure why, but I think this is so cool.

It's about goddamned time.

National Guardsmen Reach New Orleans: "Four days after Hurricane Katrina struck, the National Guard arrived in force Friday with food, water and weapons, churning through the floodwaters in a vast truck convoy with orders to retake the streets and bring relief to the suffering. "

The Interdictor

You guys want some good, inside, real time info on what’s going on in NO, go to this site:

The Interdictor.

It’s a little heavy on the military-speak, but he’s got the inside poop. Example:

The Real News

The following is the result of an interview I just conducted via cell phone with a New Orleans citizen stranded at the Convention Center. I don't know what you're hearing in the mainstream media or in the press conferences from the city and state officials, but here is the truth:

"Bigfoot" is a bar manager and DJ on Bourbon Street, and is a local personality and icon in the city. He is a lifelong resident of the city, born and raised. He rode out the storm itself in the Iberville Projects because he knew he would be above any flood waters. Here is his story as told to me moments ago. I took notes while he talked and then I asked some questions:
Three days ago, police and national guard troops told citizens to head toward the Crescent City Connection Bridge to await transportation out of the area. The citizens trekked over to the Convention Center and waited for the buses which they were told would take them to Houston or Alabama or somewhere else, out of this area.

It's been 3 days, and the buses have yet to appear.

Although obviously he has no exact count, he estimates more than 10,000 people are packed into and around and outside the convention center still waiting for the buses. They had no food, no water, and no medicine for the last three days, until today, when the National Guard drove over the bridge above them, and tossed out supplies over the side crashing down to the ground below. Much of the supplies were destroyed from the drop. Many people tried to catch the supplies to protect them before they hit the ground. Some offered to walk all the way around up the bridge and bring the supplies down, but any attempt to approach the police or national guard resulted in weapons being aimed at them.

There are many infants and elderly people among them, as well as many people who were injured jumping out of windows to escape flood water and the like -- all of them in dire straights.

Any attempt to flag down police results in being told to get away at gunpoint. Hour after hour they watch buses pass by filled with people from other areas. Tensions are very high, and there has been at least one murder and several fights. 8 or 9 dead people have been stored in a freezer in the area, and 2 of these dead people are kids.

The people are so desperate that they're doing anything they can think of to impress the authorities enough to bring some buses. These things include standing in single file lines with the eldery in front, women and children next; sweeping up the area and cleaning the windows and anything else that would show the people are not barbarians.

The buses never stop.

Before the supplies were pitched off the bridge today, people had to break into buildings in the area to try to find food and water for their families. There was not enough. This spurred many families to break into cars to try to escape the city. There was no police response to the auto thefts until the mob reached the rich area -- Saulet Condos -- once they tried to get cars from there... well then the whole swat teams began showing up with rifles pointed. Snipers got on the roof and told people to get back.

He reports that the conditions are horrendous. Heat, mosquitoes and utter misery. The smell, he says, is "horrific."

He says it's the slowest mandatory evacuation ever, and he wants to know why they were told to go to the Convention Center area in the first place; furthermore, he reports that many of them with cell phones have contacts willing to come rescue them, but people are not being allowed through to pick them up.


I have "Bigfoot"'s phone number and will gladly give it to any city or state official who would like to tell him how everything is under control.

Addendum: Bigfoot just called to report that "they" (the authorities) are cleaning up the dead bodies at the Convention Center right now.

He’s also got photos and live cams and I think links to scanners.

Finally, a nice story.

From a fark.com hurricane thread:

"I've been staying in a hotel in Huntsville, TX since I evacuated my home in Slidell, LA. Besides my family there are quite a few refugees here.

Local restaurants and churches have "dropped by" with meals for us.

Some guy just walked into the office and paid the bills for all the refugees here through Sept 8. He wouldn't let the office people tell us who he is.

I am speechless.

There is a lot of ugliness going on in New Orleans, but there are some very wonderful people in Texas."

"Who's Who and New on Alias?"

No real spoilers, just descriptions of the new folks.

The Dark Lord Mickey Rourke: "The hair? The Van Dyke? Those glasses? That ascot? He's fully in thrall to the Dark Lord. And he'd TOTALLY take your soul in exchange for like, you know, something, if he wasn't so fully THRASHED, dude. And, yeah, he's got shit to stir and babies to eat and brimstone to boil, but that can all wait, because first he's got to paaaaaar-tay!"

Sweet Baby Jesus, the news out of New Orleans gets worse by the hour. There have to be some good stories, stories of human kindness, bravery, sacrifice? Please, throw me a bone here.

El Chupacabra!

Happy Birthday to my sister Sheila!! (the one on the left)

39 years old already. You're going to pass right by me soon!

Have a good day.

Can you say, "price gouging"?

Holy crap!

More on The Constant Gardner.

Salon.com: "Weisz has never been better: She's joyously expressive and alive, but there's gravity beneath that milkmaid complexion. She's grounded even when she's being flirtatious. And Fiennes has never been more moving"

Rolling Stone: "The underrated Weisz is electrifying in her richest role to date. And Fiennes plays this reluctant hero like a gathering storm, his performance growing in power as passivity ceases to be an option. His embrace of Africa, which Meirelles and his gifted cinematographer, Cesar Charlone, present as a stinging rebuke to global indifference, is his embrace of Tessa. In negotiating the slippery slope of political and personal commitment, Meirelles emerges with one of the year's best and most provocative movies. Long after it's over, you still feel its sting."

Ooo.

Look like The Constant Gardner is shaping up to be a good one. I've been dying to see this ever since I dreamt in Michigan that Ralph Fiennes asked me to marry him.

Opens tomorrow, I think.

While New Orleans Drowns.

I know, I know, I said no more, but I just can't help myself.

I realize that there isn't much he can really do, but you would think that someone near him should understand the innapropriate nature of photo-ops like this, during a time like this, and that person shoulda/coulda helped him to avoid coming off looking like such an insensitive prat.

Are you sure it wasn't a girlie scream?

The Day After.

The Day After Katrina Photo Essay.

NPR had a short interview with a man who spoke about leaving New Orleans on Sunday to stay with his sister and then having to leave that house because a tree fell on it (150 miles inland) and going to another sister's place further north. He said the devastation he's seen on TV is so overwhelming that he feels numb. But when he talked about having to leave their three cats, he started to cry, and so did I. He said he left them enough food and water for 3 wks to a month, even though he didn't think he'd be gone for more than 3 or 4 days, but he didn't think that was really going to make a difference.

No more Katrina talk from me for a while. Lets see what else is going on in the world, besides the 650 people who just died in a crushing stampede in Baghdad. I'm afraid to look.

Want to help?

"The Federal Emergency Management Agency lists these organizations for those seeking to assist victims of Hurricane Katrina."

Good one, Defamer: "A perfectly plotted Mametian double-cross."

The Devastation

Photos of the damage wrought by Katrina are beginning to pop up. You can click here for Yahoo!'s full coverage.

Katrina Heartbreak

Katrina kills at least 55 in Mississippi: "'I held her hand as tight as I could,' the man said. 'She told me, 'You can't hold me.' She told me to take care of the kids and the grandkids ... we ain't got nowhere to go. I'm lost. That's all I had.' "

God, why didn't these people leave town when they had the chance? It's just too sad. And you know, I'm sure the death toll will rise during the coming days, but I really think the mayor of Biloxi is stretching the analogy a bit when he says, "This is our tsunami." Get a little perspective, pal.

Good luck to everyone affected.

Hungover Pug

Hungover Pug
Originally uploaded by gina64.

Marty partied a little too hardy on Saturday night.

Is Vaughn a goner? : "Michael Vartan, co-star of ABC's spy series Alias, denied to Entertainment Tonight rumors that he has been written out of the show. The New York Post reported that Aug. 17 was Vartan's last day of shooting because he was killed off in the show. Asked if this was just a rumor, Vartan replied: 'Yes indeed.' "

I wish I could believe him.

Titty Ho!

Isn't that what all those old British guys used to say in the old movies? No, wait, that was "Tally ho!"

Check this out: "Rude Britain is a 100-long list of the country's most double entendre-riddled towns, villages and streets."

Holy Land USA

At Holy Land USA, A Vision Crumbles:

"Greco's Holy Land USA, once a vibrant miniature replica of Bethlehem and Jerusalem that drew thousands of pilgrims in the 1950s and '60s, is probably beyond repair, reduced to a cultural oddity.

All that's left of his toil on the craggy hilltop that overlooks downtown Waterbury and I-84 is rotting plywood, rusted chicken wire and overgrown brush, the victim of weather, wear and vandalism.

Even the sturdiest - and most obvious - depiction of Greco's faith is in peril. The 56-foot, lighted steel cross that stands high above I-84 is structurally unsound."

I live very close to Holy Land now and grew up with it as part of the local landscape, but the closest I have ever been is viewing the lit cross from the highway. I'd love to go and take some pictures myself some time. Maybe with an armed guard, though - it is near a pretty scary part of town.

This site has photos of Holy Land in its early days. Fascinating.

Katrina

Hurricane Katrina crushing New Orleans, Gulf Coast.


image from weather.com

It looks like Katrina, even though she's been downgraded to a Category 4 with 'only' 140 mph winds, is still whipping their butts. I've been getting little bits of info and links to local NO sites from a Fark discussion thread. I heard that one of the levees surrounding NO has broken and the 9th ward is getting hammered. Also that the roof of the Superdome, where 10,000 people are taking shelter, has started to leak. I've got a really bad feeling about that situation - God help them if that roof collapses.

While New Orleans is getting all the coverage, I guess Biloxi, MS might actually get it worse. I'm going to be following this all day.

It's a good thing it's a Monday and I didn't really feel like working anyway.

You have got to be kidding me.

Get your Lindsay Lohan doll here.

I'd say that's about a gram-sized purse, wouldn't you? *sniff*

Groton Dodges a Bullet.

In local news, the BRAC voted today to remove our Groton submarine base from its list of base closures. This comes as a major relief to thousands of CT residents, since the closure of the base would have pretty much devastated the entire southeastern region of the state, not to mention deprived the state of billions of dollars in revenue. Phew, close one.

Good work on the part of the governor and our senators.

Only The Onion.

Rumsfeld Makes Surprise Visit To Wife's Vagina: "The visit comes at a time in which controversial rumors have spread throughout Washington about low morale on the part of Mrs. Rumsfeld. Reports from confidantes indicate that her vagina is being undersupplied by the Department of Defense, and extended tours of duty have stirred up feelings of discontent. Although the two have faithfully served one another since 1954, Secretary Rumsfeld's busy schedule and demanding obligations have prevented him from visiting the fertile crescent since last November's highly publicized surprise visit. "

How do you solve a problem like Johanne?

UPDATE: Whoa, check her out! Get down, Sister Johanne!

Yeah but, did they get to keep the gifts?

Wedding sting hits smuggling ring: "The guests thought they were headed to an early afternoon wedding on a yacht docked near Atlantic City in the United States.
They ended up in jail instead, courtesy of an elaborate ruse by U.S. federal authorities hoping to bust up an international smuggling ring."

Drive-by Review.

Catwoman - Really quite bad. Once again, my estimation of Halle Berry as a highly overrated actress is proved true. Sharon Stone manages to be WAY over the top and really lifeless at the same time. When the film's not moving too slowly, the editing is so frantic during the fight scenes that I had to look away before I felt nauseous. Halle Berry looked hot in that cat suit, but Michelle Pfieffer was sexier.

I got 'sniffed': "At random intervals, or if there is reason to suspect the electronic device that someone is carrying, the security attendant quickly swipes a cloth over the device and places the cloth on the sniffer. The sniffer analyzes the cloth for any trace residue of the types of chemicals used to make bombs. "

Home again.

Just a quick note to say I've returned and I'm crazy busy! I have an insane amount of photos to sort through and choose from, and I'll be posting those soon (probably to Flickr).

We had a great time playing cards and games, eating, reading and doing a little (very little) boating. We also did the tourist thing at Mackinac City (pronounced "Mackinaw"), the Mackinac Bridge, and the Mystery Spot, a tourist-trap optical illusion that's fun, nonetheless. Hey! I just googled "the Mystery Spot", and if I had any doubt left that what we saw was an optical illusion, this has erased it.

It was a very quiet week, without many tales to tell. Oh! I did get searched for explosives before my flight to Detroit. Little old me.

I've got to get back to work, but here's a scary picture for you. Yipe!

Adios, again.

I'm leaving you again, this time for a week in Michigan. Have a wonderful week. I'll be back on Sunday, August 21.

High Praise, Indeed.

Joss Whedon: "My peeps and I just finished a crazed Veronica Marsathon, and I can no longer restrain myself. Best. Show. Ever. Seriously, I've never gotten more wrapped up in a show I wasn't making, and maybe even more than those. Crazy crisp dialogue. Incredibly tight plotting. Big emotion, I mean BIG, and charsimatic actors and I was just DYING from the mystery and the relationships and PAIN, this show knows from pain and no, I don't care, laugh all you want, I had to share this. These guys know what they're doing on a level that intimidates me. It's the Harry Potter of shows. "

Looks like I'm going to have to add Veronica Mars DVDs to my queue.

Drive-By Review

Hitch - Nothing new under the sun, and just OK. Will Smith is as charming as ever, and Kevin James was funny, but it was a really bad screenplay. And a little too long, too.

Beautiful Baby Thomas

Beautiful Baby Thomas
Originally uploaded by gina64.

My new nephew. Looks alot like his Daddy did when he was a baby.

Welcome to the family, little Thomas.

"British police confirmed that after Melvyn Reed woke from his triple bypass heart operation earlier this year, his complicated marital affairs took a turn for a worse. All three of his spouses had turned up at the same time, despite his efforts to stagger their visits."

Now I've got the Benny Hill theme music running through my head.

Obnoxious.

Gimmicky Magazine Inserts Aim to Grab Page Flippers: "Next month, Rolling Stone and Us Weekly magazines will feature a new ad from the WB network that readers will have a hard time ignoring. Headlights on an illustration of a car will flicker as music plays and characters from 'Supernatural,' a new drama on the WB, offer sound bites about the spooky program."

Oh why don't you just rent out space on the inside of my eyelids for crying out loud, so you can get to me while I sleep?

Peter Jennings, 1938-2005

Rest in peace. You were my favorite.

Wheels on the ground.

Commander Eileen Collins makes a perfect landing. Well done, Discovery, and welcome home.

Photos.

The dock.
Originally uploaded by gina64.

I've uploaded more photos from our trip to Maine. Please take a look!

Hannah on our beach.

Beachcombing.
Originally uploaded by gina64.

In her own little world.

Nap time.

Oh man, this is me right now. I'm yawning so much this afternoon I think I've sucked almost all of the oxygen out of my office. I could lie down on my floor right now and sleep for days, I think.

I'm not sure why I'm so tired. Just coming down off the weekend, I guess. And I'm recovering from a hellacious bout with spyware that infected my computer a week ago, called "Look2Me", as well as a case of corrupted Outlook Express (a result, I've been told, of an upgrade to my firewall). The frustration and hours spent at my computer put my back and neck in such a state, I could barely turn my head yesterday. Add yesterday's yardwork into the mix and I am just barely keeping my butt from sliding off this chair.

Maine.

Collecting Shells on our Hike.
Originally uploaded by gina64.

This is my first time blogging a photo from Flickr! I hope it works alright.

I've posted some photos from the trip to Maine there - more to come soon.

SpyGranDaddy?

A slightly spoilery description that sets up the new 'Alias' season (which premieres, I believe, on Sep 29).

I'm very apprehensive about them incorporating JG's pregnancy into the story, but after reading that, I'm sort of getting excited about it. After all, the show has never been primarily about spying - it has always been centered around Sydney's personal life and her relationships with everyone around her. She works with her entire family, how can it not be? I am therefore going to keep an open mind about things. And if they have to shift the focus to Jack as Sydney gets further along, well, I'll have just have grin and bear it, won't I?

Drive-By Reviews

Napoleon Dynamite - You'll either love or hate this movie; either find it funny or the dumbest movie you've ever seen. I loved it. Question: was Grandma gay? Make sure you watch through to the end of the credits for a bonus scene with Napoleon riding a horse. We were laughing so hard we were crying. Check out some cool movie trivia here.

Team America: World Police - Satire at its finest. No one emerges unscathed, especially Hollywood. Rude, crude and very smart stuff. If for no other reason, you must see this movie for Kim Jong-Il:



And for some more good trivia, click here.

And she's French!

Ladies and jellyspoons, meet the future Most-Hated-Woman-On-Television-Since-Lauren.

God, please let this mean that Vaughn will be speaking more French next season. I need something to soothe my baby storyline anxiety.

I'm Your Wheelchair, Baby...

Bo breaks his foot onstage.

Jack Bauer - Real Action Hero.

For $178.00, he had better really be able to save the world in a day.

Back.

I'm back, vacation was wonderful, and I'm crazy trying to catch up on everything. There are many photos to come, I promise, as well as a rundown of the highlights of the week. Quick story: I finished "Shadowland" shortly after arriving at the cabin and then immediately dove into Harry Potter. Do you recall me saying this: "I need to read HP before I get spoiled!"? Can you believe that I got royally spoiled while standing in line ordering lunch at a sandwich place in Bar Harbor??? Oh, I was LIVID! No, I didn't say anything to the 2 geeks who were talking so loudly they probably spoiled half the patrons, but Gosh, what a couple of flippin' idiots!

Yes, we watched Napoleon Dynamite last week. Vote for Pedro!

Hiatus.

I'm off to the woods of Maine for a week. Take care and have a good week and I'll be back on Monday, August 1.

Bye!

Ack Ack!

Christina Ricci has starved herself right into a gray alien.

Eat something, dear.

"A group of dogs is taken to a day camp near Bogota in a bus in this photo taken on June 30, 2005. The Transmiperro system (Tranport my Dog) is a day camp for dogs, where a colourful bus takes them to a camp in the village of Cajic, 30 km (19 miles) north of Bogota, where the animals are trained and enjoy games and activities. Each pet owner pays between $34 and $106 per month depending on the program the dog is enrolled in. The dogs are returned home, exhausted, at the end of the day."

Outrageous, considering how many Columbian children are probably starving on the streets of Bolivia, but God that's a cute picture.

Boom!

Sorry, but these sumo photos are cracking me up.

It was the super-wedgie in this photo that first caught my attention until I realized something even more worthy of noting: they are women.

OK, can someone explain to me why no one could get this kid to stop goofing around while the President of the United States was announcing the nomination of his father to the United States Supreme Court?

Scotty to The Bridge.

James Doohan has died. Rest in peace, Scotty.

Dealing with Deadwood: "Ride in a bus without bathrooms for an hour into the middle of Nowhere, California to sit in the 100-degree heat you thought you'd escaped when you put Phoenix in the rear-view mirror for a few weeks, just to kick around a dusty back lot and talk to actors and writers? When it's the set of Deadwood, absolutely."

Long, Strange Trip.

Ron Moore's Deep Space Journey: "As in the original show, the humans of the Galactica and its fleet are relentlessly pursued by evil robots called Cylons. But in the current version, conceived by Ronald D. Moore and David Eick, most of the evil Cylons look like people and have found God. Ruthlessly principled and deeply religious, the Cylons have been compared by fans and critics both to Al Qaeda and to the evangelical right. And the humans they are relentlessly pursuing are fallible and complex. Their shirts are not clingy or color-coded; the men of space wear neckties. They are led by Edward James Olmos as the Galactica's commander and Mary McDonnell as the president of the humans, and their stories revolve as much around the tensions within -- between the military and civil leadership of the fleet -- as they do around the Cylon threat. As Eick described the show to me last month with evident, subversive pleasure, ''The bad guys are all beautiful and believe in God, and the good guys all [expletive] each other over.'' Moore, who is also the show's head writer, put it more simply: ''They are us.'' "

Yes, the horse is dead and I'm still beating it.

Date with the Half-Blood Prince.

Harry Potter will be coming with me on vacation next week! I'm having a hell of a time getting through "Shadowland", and I'm hoping to have it finished by the weekend. I've only got about 100 pages left, so I'm optimistic, but it's such a dense, weird book, filled with magic/fairy tale/horror mumbo jumbo (and some WWI stories thrown in) that frankly makes very little sense to me. If the author can tie it all together in the end, fine; if not, that's also fine. I just want it done. I need to read HP before I get spoiled!

Christ Almighty, it's hotter than Dick's hatband out there. On the bright side, we don't have it quite as bad as these guys. Stay cool, eip!

Drive-By Reviews

Dr. Strangelove or: How I Stopped Worrying and Learned to Love the Bomb - A classic, well-acted black comedy, but not nearly as funny as I thought it would be. Peter Sellers was phenomenal, especially as Mandrake and the President. His portrayal, however, of the title character was, well, weird. Check that one off the list, but I don't know that I would watch it again.

Akira - Called the cornerstone, or foundation for all modern anime. Visually stunning but the plot (don't ask) was at points impenetrable. And that sort of sums up most of anime, doesn't it?

Princess Mononoke - I really enjoyed this. The animation, the music, the story - all beautiful. I highly recommend it.

In the mail from Netflix: "Team America", "Napolean Dynamite" and "MST3K: Manos, the Hands of Fate", and they're all coming with me on vacation.

So.

I think I'm finally getting used to the braces. A little. The teeth are still too sore for any serious chewing, but the inside of my mouth is feeling a little less shredded than yesterday. Ever have one of those taste buds that get all sore and hurt like a son of a bitch? Imagine having 3 or 4 of them at once on both sides of your tongue and that'll give you an idea of how much talking hurt yesterday. And I won't even go into the condition of the insides of my cheeks!

I have newfound respect for those little ten-year-olds with braces.

Cat Lovers Unite!

A manifesto for an official cat holiday: "Being a cat is cool. Apart from the fact that folks regard us merely as cuddly companions with virtually no feelings- except for catnip. So I figured I'll deal with these misconceptions in a book. Which puts me in a fix. Because a bunch of scairdy-cats said, People believe we're enigmatic, so they don't bug us to perform stupid pet tricks (Nothing personal, Dave). Your book will blow our cover."

Finally, at 41.

28 months and counting!

I got them put on this morning. They don't feel too bad right now - just tight and uncomfortable. What hurts is the inside of my left cheek. I can feel a little pointy end of wire, so I think I'll probably have to go back to him next week to get that fixed.

What I'm concentrating on right now, though, is not spitting in people's faces as I talk to them.

They're back.

K-Fug: "Yeah, anyway, I just ran out to get some water and some Cheetos and some beef jerky and some ice cream sandwiches and a couple of Twinkies and then I had to run by my dealer's house because B said she didn't want him to deliver my shit anymore because he was 'a bad influence on the baby,' or some shit, and then I was like, (a) the baby isn't even OUT yet, (2) it's not like he was a bad influence on all those other kids I have, I'm pretty sure, but then she said some BULLSHIT about not paying for it anymore and then, dude, I swear to God, she reached for my hand and TRIED TO PUT IT IN THE DEEP FRYER and, man, HORMONES, dude, dial it DOWN. So I ran out to give her some time to chill. She has been seriously so crabby ever since she caught me going through the safe."

The gofugyourself girls are back from vacation and kickin' ass.

No respect.

Sci-fi seeks critical mass: "Those in the genre say it encompasses more than space and special effects and deserves critics' respect and Emmy consideration...A vice president in the TV industry recently asked me what TV shows I watch for enjoyment. I mentioned my favorite is "Battlestar Galactica" on Sci Fi Channel. She laughed. I asked if she'd seen it. No, she said, and laughed again. Did she know, I asked, that it's a gritty adult drama of family members and colleagues in deep-rooted conflict not unlike that of "The Sopranos"? That they're part of a civilization struggling not only to survive but to define itself amid messy terrorist warfare? That it explores the values of competing societies that demonize each other's spiritual beliefs? That it's full of gutsy acting by the likes of Edward James Olmos and sophisticated allegory mirroring today's global politics?

She laughed again."

The second season of Battlestar Galactica premieres on Friday night at 10:00 P.M. Don't miss it.

I watched HBO's Autopsy special on demand last night and I'm sorry to say I was a little disappointed. The premise: HBO asked viewers to e-mail them with stories of mysterious deaths/disappearances and they would pick 2 that Dr. Michael Baden would investigate. I don't want to spoil anything, so I'll just say that the whole thing felt exploitive (exploitative?), especially the first story (the conclusion of which I saw coming early on). I think I prefer the detachment of the earlier shows - more documentary style reporting and less reality show drama, please. That said, I will admit that the best (or most touching) part of the hour came in the second story, when the grown son of a woman gone missing for 21 years asks Dr. Baden if he can touch her skeletal remains. The tenderness with which he cradled his mother's skull was heartbreaking.

Oh, and Dr. Baden is much taller than I thought he was.

Discovery set for Wednesday launch, the first shuttle launch since the Columbia disaster two and a half years ago. God, I can't believe it was that long ago.

I wish them well.

Very cool photo.

Prince of Persia 3!

IGN has a special sneak peek at Prince of Persia 3. I haven't played Warrior Within yet (PoP 2), but Sheila has, and I have to say that in watching her play I noticed the things they didn't like so much: the annoying guitar rock, the confusing progression of the story and the elevated gore level. Sheila had to keep a walkthrough close by throughout almost the entire game, it would get so confusing. They say that Ubisoft has corrected those elements with PoP3 and returned some of the most enjoyable aspects of the original.

Warrior Within is next on my list (after I paint!), and even with these problems, I'm still psyched to start playing it. And now I can't wait for PoP3! (I just wish I could see where in the article they give the release date)

Wait, I just read another article, and they say that PoP3 should be released at holiday time (hello, Christmas list) and Ubisoft will also be releasing Splinter Cell 4 after the holiday, probably in early 2006. Woohoo!

450 Sheep Jump to Their Deaths in Turkey.

This story is just begging for a joke, but after reading the article, it's really kind of horrible and not all that funny. Kind of.

London

I don't know what to say, really, about the London bombings, except that I hope that they are able to catch those responsible in a timely manner and bring them swiftly to justice. May God strengthen those who lost loved ones or were injured in the blasts and may He punish those who are doing this in His name.

Oo, Bayh-by.

"Was it the chin that gave him the win?"

In case you're wondering, my guy didn't win.

Dearly Beloved

SpyDaddy officiates at Garner and Affleck's wedding.

Well, he was Jesus, after all.

Sleepwalker rescued from crane: "Emergency services were called to a building site in London after a passer-by spotted the 15-year-old girl curled up on top of a concrete counterweight high above the ground."

Scary!

This hack is totally going to ruin X3.

I posted a ton of photos from the weekend over at Flickr, including a bunch of Marty and Petie and the flowers growing in my yard.

Deep Impact

A Smashing Success.

NASA's Deep Impact Mission was a success, sending back some pretty cool images of the moment of impact with the comet. I'm looking forward to seeing what the Hubble Telescope was able to capture.

For my one Canadian Friend.

Happy Canada Day!

Best laid plans and all that.

My weekend is filling up fast - family coming over to swim tomorrow, 4th picnic/party on Sunday and picnic and fireworks on Monday - so it's a safe bet that I will not get very far with the whole painting thing. I might get as far as moving furniture and taping...

Before the weekend begins and I get caught up in things, I wanted to wish everyone a happy and safe holiday weekend. So does Marty.