My seven

Greg and Selena are so creative. After reading Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, how fitting to list your own Horcruxes. Here goes...

1. My Lorée oboe
2. My DVD copy of Mononoke Hime
3. My first Christmas ornament
4. My piano charm on my charm bracelet
5. The picture of me, some sorority sisters, and Brutus Buckeye circa 1997
6. My copy of The Star Wars Trilogy: The Complete Soundtrack Anthology by John Williams
   
7. My Ph.D. thesis

If you were to ask me who I would kill for these, I would say I am not as picky as Voldemort. Just line up seven lawyers, politicians, and a few cockroaches.

thoroughly entertaining

It is one of my favorites. Not sure why, but Thoroughly Modern Millie is just plain fun. So when I heard and read that Austin's Summer Stock program was putting on the production, I jumped. The Summer Stock program consists of high school and college students working with professionals to put on full productions. They are the cast, the crew, and everything in between. I must say, I was wholly impressed. The Mary Moody Theater at St. Edward's University is about a 200 seater theater in the round (or square) and the choreography played to its strengths. Both Millie and Billy were top notch and Ms. Dorothy topped them both. She had some pipes and a great presence. The dancing was even great, feeling quite professional. Kudos for an exceptionally good time.

There are not many chances of Broadway productions in Austin. The theater that usually hosts the tours is down for the year. Guess I will get my kicks elsewhere.

Reality TV, anyone?

"Television is the first truly democratic culture - the first culture available to everybody and entirely governed by what the people want. The most terrifying thing is what people do want."

~ Clive Barnes
New York Post Dance and Drama Critic

Tribute

Though it ends, I am not sad. Though there is death, all is not forgotten. Though we weep, there is also laughter.

For years of pleasure, many thanks.

rats and machines

Remember when I said it looked like fun? Well it was. Transformers is a fantastic bout of transforming action full of world peril and hilarious moments. There were only a few corny lines and two horrible characters. With these oversights, perfect summer fun.

As per usual, I skipped into a second feature (I hate paying full price for a film these days) and found Ratatouille enjoyable but not up to the charming standards of its predecessors. Again, extremely gorgeous to look at but almost hard to believe. That sounds silly about an imaginary kids film but because it took place in the human world, it was hard to convince me. I am sure that is my practical engineering side talking and I should get over it. A nice film but for me, only just that.

Seven Deathly Questions

http://www.scholastic.com/harrypotter/downloads/bookmarks.htm

Scholastic asks seven questions as the Potter series comes to fruition. By far, the most interesting question is whether Snape is good or evil. As I have just finished re-reading book four, I believe that he is good. There is just too much evidence for this argument, the top one being that Dumbledore trusted him beyond all measure. We have to trust our late noble leader. Furthermore, Voldemort himself says that one of his most trusted Death Eater is lost forever something that I think will come back to haunt our fearless army for never would Voldemort really trust Snape again. I fear that Voldemort will betray Snape which will eventually lead to the cheater of death's downfall. Optimistic me believes all will be well in the end.

And I must say that the last few chapters in that book are the hardest ever to read. How much that poor boy goes through in one night. How much we love him for it.

Riding the rails

If one thing bothers me about this country, other than the media and the lawyers, it is the fact that we have no high speed ground mass transit. The highway system, while impressive and longstanding, is becoming atrocious. Roads fall apart in no time with the amount of traffic and poor weather. Construction is a never ending hindrance. Gas prices are not decreasing and please do not get me started on people sitting in the left lane talking on their phones and going under the speed limit. I understand the logistics, the fact that we would need to invest quite a bit of capital to get things moving, pun intended, but perhaps we should be investing in this country more than we are currently.

Here in Austin, after seventeen years, we will have commuter train transit (on existing tracks) into the city and to San Antonio. Why this was not adopted earlier, I will never understand as traffic in Austin is very poor with only two north-south routes that envelop the city and only an east-west that sits at the south portion of the city. Rush hours are parking lots and enough to make my blood pressure rise to the outside summer temperatures.

Let us hope that this country thinks ahead and starts planning for a better way to travel throughout.

Hey America, Make With the !@~$ High-Speed Rail Already

a beautiful Declaration

An impressive and throroughly enjoyable dissection of the Declaration of Independence by Stephen E. Lucas. It is a long piece but, to my satisfaction, speaks not only to the meaning of the document but the poetry, the sonorous phrases, and the linguistic nature of each chosen word. A must read by any person doubting or needing reaffirmation of the true genius on which this country is built.

Declaration of Independence: Stylistic Artistry

lucky me

More touring of Texas this weekend took me to Ft. Worth and Dallas. I stopped by the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History for the Star Wars: Where Science Meets Imagination exhibit, the only southwestern location of this tour. It was pretty interesting though I skipped most of the learning centers for kids. I just enjoyed the costumes and models of ships that were used in the films. The keenest thing was you could see how used they were with scuffs on the shoes and little LED lights in the models. While the gloss from the Star Wars universe, for me, has receded, the creativity of the series still rings true. A lot of the creatures, ships, and locations while extreme are based in fact and that will continue to make the fantastical story endure.

After a side trip to the Russel Stover outlet for some sugar free candies for my aunt, I headed to Pizza Hut Park for the FC Dallas - Houston Dynamo soccer game. It was great to be there and it is a great park. However the game was scoreless with little shots on goal. Not the best introduction to my professional game debut. I hope next time, and there will be a next time, is a better game.

Finally, after spending some time with my aunt, we drove to Shreveport, LA for some gambling at the casinos there. Shreveport is no Vegas or Atlantic City, but there are plenty of casinos and shopping. I suck at gambling because I hate to take risks. I cringe at televised poker tournaments watching these thousands of dollars being wasted on cards I know are going to lose. However, that day was my lucky day. I happened to win $172.80 on the penny slots. I should have bought a lottery ticket.

From 50,000 to 12 million

First printing of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone: 50,000
First printing of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: 12,000,000
First and the many subsequent times reading the series in full: priceless

It is a phenomenon. That is the only way to describe it. A phenomenon in which a little boy grows into a wizard. One that garners friendships that would last a lifetime and a seven year (ten years in real time) struggle of good over evil. The laughs, the tears, the curses and magical feats that are etched in every reader's mind are proof of that phenomenon. And it only gets better with each and every read. While I am a person who reads, watches, and listens to things again and again, the iteration of reading Harry Potter has become a universal hobby. I am ecstatic to be a part of it.

Vive Harry Potter.

Summer fest

As a movie lover, it is very hard not to get excited when blockbusters arrive in the Summer. Sure, most of them are monotonous, vapid works but they provide just the right amount of distraction to the unbearable weather and monotonous, vapid piece that is my life. This Summer has already seen big money with the third installment of Pirates of the Caribbean and those lovable thieves and their Ocean chronicles. More is yet to come with the third installment of Bourne in The Bourne Ultimatum. Also Transformers and Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix step up to bat looking for that treasured All Star. But most interesting of all, to me anyway, is Ratatouille which is looking very good so far. I always think after each of Pixar's film that the next installment can not live up to its predecessor. I thought that of Cars, which while entertaining and glorious to look at, did not have that extra element that is found in Toys, Monstors Inc., Finding Nemo, or The Incredibles. Judging from the response of Ratatouille though, it may just make the grade. On a similar but un-blockbuster note, I am very interested in Vitus, a Swiss-German film about a piano wunderkind trying to live as a normal boy. It looks like the perfect companion to these action packed flicks with very little character development.

I have said before I do not go to movies in the theatre much anymore. But as the temperature and more significantly, the humidity, increases those dark cool theaters look more and more enticing. I may make it out more than once in the coming months to check out these titles and more.

A Gold Cup for the US

Congratulations to the US Men's team who defeated Mexico 2-1 in the CONCACAF Gold Cup. It was a clean match and an exciting game.

On a similar note, I have been to the past two Austin Lightning games and suffered through two 2-0 losses. I hope things improve. I make my way to Dallas next weekend to watch the top teams of the Western Conference of the MLS, FC Dallas and the Houston Dynamo. There is no end to my excitement.

This week on repeat, rhythm and rhyme

I have previously written that I love Gershwin. Well now this means both George and Ira. This week I have "Fascinatin' Rhythm" on repeat and it is a superior version sung by no other than Ella Fitzgerald. The epitome of George and Ira's collaboration, this song does no wrong. I especially think that Ira's lyrics are perfect in rhyme and accent. Lyricists, especially then get little respect but Ira was pure genius and had to deal with an egotistical brother to boot. I definitely know how that feels (love you boys!).

TMNT and my love of acronyms

Yesterday I was in Target and saw that Teenage Mutant Ninja Turles, the original movie not the recent one, was on sale for $7.50. Seriously how can you pass that up? I have fond memories of this movie, watching in the theater with my brother and then again and again. I was in love with Casey Jones. Of course, I could not sleep and had to pop in the 90 minute flick. I was ecstatic to find I was laughing out loud, a rare feat these days it seems. It is amazing how little things can cheer you.

Michaelangelo: I love being a turtle!

Who the hell is Nicolas Hooper?

He is the unknown composer to Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, that's who. His clips of the score play at the movie's website and I have to say, I am pretty impressed so far. A fantastical feel, almost Elfman like to several clips with just the hint of the original Williams theme. In my mind, when a composer can hint at the theme with just a few notes and not beat you over the head with it, it usually works very well. I use Lord of the Rings as an example. By Return of the King, Shore had to play two notes and you knew to which theme he was referring. I was hoping Hooper could do this and the few bars we get seem to hold true. The official soundtrack release date is July 10, 2007.

Tommy, can you hear me?

This weeks track on repeat is "Cousin Kevin" from The Who's Tommy. I love this production. Maybe its the simplistic chorus that fills the air when that guitar starts playing. Most likely it is the fact the its signature colors are yellow and black. Whatever the reason, I love to sing along and this particular song is excellent. I particularly enjoy the guttural British that Cousin Kevin speaks as he says "nastiest play friend".

More Star Wars fun

30 years is a lot to celebrate. Empire Magazine decided to commemorate with 30 different covers to the magazine. This is a lot of fun.

Empire: Magazine

A cloned animation

So it seems that the original version by Samurai Jack's Genndy Tartakovsky was not enough and now a CGI version of The Clone Wars is set to hit the small screen. While beautiful visually, I am reserving judgment until I see the depth of characters that I enjoy. Still, there is something to be said for lots of jedi kicking ass.

Star Wars: The Clone Wars

A long time ago ... 30 years to be exact

Today is the 30th anniversary of the release of the original Star Wars, i.e. Star Wars IV: A New Hope. A big happy birthday to a franchise which even though has been less than brilliant in its latter years, has proven the test of time. Maybe its time to watch the original, non CGI films again to be reminded how special the trilogy was and its impact on my life and the genre.

Man against machine

It just looks like so much fun!

http://movies.yahoo.com/feature/transformers.html

Alech Taadi

These past two weeks my repeating song has been Alech Taadi by Cheb Khaled on his album Sahra. This is the song that plays in the cab chase scene in The Fifth Element. Sung in Arabic, it has fantastic rhythms. It was hard to find but the rest of the album, N'ssi N'ssi is also pretty good if you do not mind Arabic and French music. Lots of fun, this one.

Oh my God, the Indians win it!

There are very few sports movies that I enjoy. But the ones I do enjoy, I love to watch over and over again. This weekend I was vegging because, seriously, the past few months have been brutal as far as work is concerned. On HDTV was one of my favorites, Major League, unedited and commercial free. It was beautiful and actually got me in the summer mood, something particularly hard to do with me in Texas. Here, summer started a month ago. My other favorites are Little Big League, Hoosiers, and Field of Dreams. Let us hope they make their way to the HD screen soon.

Goodbye, girls!

Gilmore Girls is a goner. The announcement came today that the fast talking, pop culture referencing series is ending after a weak seventh season. I feel this is the best move that it could make even though I will miss Luke, Lorelei, Stars Hollow, and most of all, Emily Gilmore.

On a similar note, despite a still quirky and fun filled Veronica Mars return, complete with love triangles and hate crimes, it is probably off to the gallows. The best thing about this show is Ronnie's relationship with her Dad. I feel this season has been on again off again when it comes to this but when they hit the screen together, I jump for joy. Here's hoping for a senior season.

Imperial forces have entered the base

The United States Postal Service is celebrating the 30th Anniversary of Star Wars. They are releasing a commemorative stamp pane in 22 days. Unique express mail packs are now available and I am thinking of sending myself something to get one in the mail. On top of that, there are R2D2 collection boxes in select cities throughout the country. I was lucky to be in one and stopped by one windy day.

If anyone out there loves me, send me a postcard with one of those stamps on it after May 22.

USPS Star Wars 30th Anniversary

One giant leap in time

Seriously, Heroes took a huge leap in entertainment tonight. I actually love when shows do the whole 180 thing with characters. It was great to see almost every one on the flip side of things. First, Hiro was amazing. Not only a battotsu warrior but clearly a genius when it comes to making timelines. He actually used string as a representation of a person and crossed them at important points in time. And finally, we get to figure out what "save the cheerleader, save the world" means. If Sylar had gained Claire's powers, he would be un-killable. Of course, that is actually what happened but hey, points for answering one question. We will not mention a certain show on an Hawaiian island which tends to just ask more and more questions.

How cool is Peter Petrelli with that scar. I thought he could regenerate like Claire but maybe he did not heal himself on purpose, to remind him of what he did. Man, he had some great powers and pulled out all the stops tonight. The end fight was a little bit of a let down but it was still fun to watch him and Sylar face off. I was worried that Parkman turned to the 'dark' side. He must have been really brainwashed to do so but I guess losing your wife and kid can do that to you. Finally, I find it truly comforting that the two characters who do not have powers, Mohinder and Ando, are the glue that holds these special people together. With all the twists and turns, the unexpected match ups, and the predestined meetings, Heroes has matured into a goldmine of TV entertainment. Congrats and welcome to the big club.

Speaking of witches

I just received something which cements my Potter fanaticism in stone. Harry Potter à l'école des sorciers. Yes, that's right. Harry Potter in French. Time for me to put my years of study to good use.

A tall order of the phoenix

It does this to me every time. Again the new Harry Potter movie gets me all geeked out about the books, the film score, the movies and the hype that surrounds it all. Since book three is still my favorite, you would think that I would not get excited about yet another release of a movie in a franchise seemingly just out to make a buck. But they do it to me everytime they play the theme and this trailer tops them all, clipping flashbacks of previous movies to really pull us in. Also, it is great is it to see it in a great format, up to 1080p.

http://movies.yahoo.com/feature/harrypotterandtheorderofthephoenix.html

Confessions of an addict filer

I love to organize and can probably be considered anal to anal retentive. Not only do I keep track of bank accounts and taxes but things like manuals to my cell phone and receipts to large household items like my washer and dryer. I thought this was weird and so did not mention to many people. However today I was reassured that I was, in fact, not a single souled filer. There are others like me and this article mentions the manual thing. I was so ecstatic, I had to share.

lifehacker.com guide to filing

By the way, lifehacker is a great site for picking up great tips on searching the web and using mozilla software.

Not quite an Easter Spring

Texas is making up for the month long 100 degree spout last summer. First, flurries in February and now, sleet in April. How wonderful that I get to experience this craziness.

Carson the Accord

I am now the official owner of my 2003 Honda Accord, Carson. While I had planned for a five year loan, I did it in 4.25 years. Quite a feat since half of that was while I was a grad student. Carson is going strong with no problems on his last checkup and all I had to replace were the front brakes. We are driving to the Hill Country tomorrow as a vacation and congratulatory stroll through wildflowers and flatlands.

Battle for the stars

Battlestar Galactica ended its third season last week and I just caught up on the last three episodes. What a tremendous series. The production value rivals that of a feature length film and the eye candy that comes along with that. There are two things that bother me about this final season. One, there was not enough action. For a large ship in space being hunted by ruthless machines, I expect battles and shots being fired. Instead we are treated to short bursts of cylon ships entering space and the terrans ... er humans running for it. I wanted them to stand and fight as they did in the past two seasons. Two, the show has become too political. I realize that it was a season of change, the humans having been occupied by the cylons for a year or so, but the riots and strikes became a bit much. The one thing it does do, though, is deal with the fallout of said change. Couples splitting, fathers and sons facing off, inner demons rearing their ugly faces. There was just a little too much for my taste and not enough action to balance it all out. Finally, I just don't buy the final four cylons. It seemed a bit contrived and a last minute shock technique. But the reappearance of Starbuck (I knew they would bring her back) was a nice ending. Too bad we have to wait nine months to see it all again.

If you could meet one person

I was listening to some music this weekend and trying to peel the hell that was my week from my mind. The music happened to be Beethoven sonatas played by the irrevocable Daniel Barenboim on PBS's Great Performances. As I watched in HD, I thought about what kind of person Beethoven was to have written such incredible music. This brought me to a question that seems should be asked in therapy or maybe in a job interview: If you could meet one person, dead or alive, who would it be? Well, Beethoven is on my list but at the top is George Gershwin. Incidentally, my list goes George Gershwin, Leonard Bernstein, then Ludwig van Beethoven but then I start to sound like Monk listing his phobias.

I have read several biographies of George and his brother, Ira. I can never get enough of his music. His personality was genuine but he was plagued with vanity and an ego which made his personal life very sad. Still he produced some of the most unique sounds and impacted jazz, opera, broadway, and orchestral music. As I was listening and browsing the web, I found that George and Ira have a website. Apparently the Gershwin Estate is still strong living off the royalties of copyrighted music. I find this extremely hopeful that their legend lives on.

http://www.gershwin.com/

Ides of March

Does anyone think about Shakespeare's Julius Caesar every March 15? For some reason, I can never forget "beware the ides of March". Nice to know that I can still remember things from high school.

On a completely different note. I have been watching a lot of BBC America tv channel lately because of the "Robin Hood" series which just premiered. Excellent show, by the way. But one of my favorite shows is reruns of "Whose Line is it Anyway" back when it was really good instead of the ABC trash that came later. Long live BBCA.

Spring Blooms

One thing I miss from North Carolina are the Bradford Pear trees which line the streets.These incredible white flowering trees would pop in the Spring only for a short week or so before they turned green. In Texas there are similar pear type flowering trees but they are not quite the same. First, they are less white and have more green leaves, diffusing the color so their impact is less. Second, they have distinct odor which is not all that appealing. But they indicate Spring and are a nice addition to the streets and walkways. This image was taken at dusk.

Quite the pickle for the heroes

Heroes goes on an offensive five week hiatus after two magnificent episodes. Now we are left with all of our heroes in the most intriguing situations. Claire, the cheerleader, has just met her grandmother and is on her way to meet her father after so elegantly picking the Hatian's pocket. I did not count that among her powers. Mr. Bennett (does anyone else feel this is not the correct name for this guy? Of Pride and Prejudice similarity, he is not) finds himself cleaning up after the premonitory painter by using a new girl who can shape shift not only herself but her surroundings as well. Very interesting. I only thank God that Simone is really dead, she was a very boring addition to the cast. Speaking of morphology, shape shifter girl also caught Mr. Bennett hook, line, and sinker by posing as his wife. So does she need to see the person to shape into them? How did she know what Simone looked like or the painter's bed for that matter? Petrelli, the eldest, has flown right into the hands of a power monger who knows and sees all. Hmm, I wonder if he has some power of his own? The mind reader is stuck in a hospital gown with no where to go and who knows what the double personality chick is up to since no one can pin down how or why her power works the way it does. Our favorite time traveler is now in a devastated New York City future after his sidekick saves his butt from the big bad curator. I have to take the chance to compare Hiro and Ando to Don Quixote and Sancho Panza chasing windmills... I mean dragons. Their cause is so noble and yet I fear they are in over their heads. Let us hope Hiro's power truly has returned and he is able to bring them all together again. Though that may be very hard since Petrelli, the younger, is now in the hands of patient zero who wants to see what makes Peter tick. Oh and Mohinder Suresh is hanging around to watch after failing to curare chai the power stealing, murdering bastard that is Syler.

la circulation

La circulation is the French word for traffic. The French seem to think that traffic goes around in a circle whereas we all know it basically goes in a straight line, a long straight line. Austin traffic is pretty bad. I am sure it is worse in other places like DC or California. However, for such a tight knit little city, the traffic is horrendous. This is mostly because there is only one major highway through the city that moves north and south. There are two other highways on the east and west sides which move north and south but can turn into a regular road with stoplights at a moment's notice. It is exasperating. Enter Google Maps. They now have a traffic feature which in real time color codes by traffic speed major roads in select cities. Thankfully, Austin is one of them. Have you hugged a Google employee today?

Netflix Indulgence

I love Netflix. Best thing since dollar movie theaters. Netflix allows me to indulge in my many obsessions like anime or romantic comedies. It also, however, gives something back to me like helping with my French or in the case this week, renew my love for the piano. I received two movies this weekend having to do with the piano. Piano Grand: A Smithsonian Celebration was really mostly a collection of performances celebrating the grand piano but it was great to see Brubeck play his own work, Jerry Lee rock, and some fabulous pianos on display. But the highlight was Great Pianists of the 20th Century. A detailed look at some of the more famous performers from the past century including Rubenstein, Richter, Paderewski, and Horowitz the latter of whom I was not very familiar and now wish I had heard live. The footage is amazing and at times the film slows to a pace where we can watch the greats curve over the keys during the fast flittering of the pieces they played. It is utterly amazing to watch their genius and technique. But I have to say that the pinnacle of this film was Horowitz playing his own Variations on Bizet's Carmen on his return to Carnegie Hall. Oh that I could have been a fly on that wall. Now I must start saving for a piano of my own.

Can't get enough

I have this strange thing. I like to listen to songs over and over again. The song varies from week to week or month to month. Last month it was "Number One" by Hazel Fernandes which is an insert song to the anime, Bleach. Great work out song by the way, very inspiring. Before that it was "Curious" by the Innocence Mission, the Overture to Candide by Leonard Bernstein, "Never There" by Cake, "Rooftop" track from the Newsies soundtrack by Alan Menken, and the list goes on and on. Today it is the overture to Dancer in the Dark by Björk . This has a fantastic melody which builds very slowly by some even more fantastic horns. The climax is a symphony of brass that makes my heart melt every time. Oh and the song on which it is based, "New World", is also beautiful and it has been alternating time in my car of late.

The pros and cons of Supernatural

A WB now CW show, completely unbelievable storyline, and monster of the week premise? While it sounds like Buffy the Vampire Slayer, the show is actually Supernatural and I have to say, I think it has that sort of potential. Supernatural does not have Joss' touch, the always intriguing plot of an extraordinary girl trying to live a normal life or any of his directorial montages. It also lacks that je ne sais quoi to give it that extra special something that Buffy always eluded. However, the Winchester boys never fail to make me laugh or cry and are always, always there for each other. Dean and Sammy Winchester are supernatural hunters like their dad before them and others besides. They have their dad's journal to help them find the ailment of whatever small midwestern town is the center of the episode that week. The supernatural portion of Supernatural is nothing to laugh at either. There is, of course, a big bad, a devil creature complete with yellow eyes who killed the boys' mother, father, and plenty of others. He is masting an army of vision prone twenty somethings for some unknown purpose and has the rest of the hunters now hunting poor Sammy. They travel in Dean's Chevy Impala which along with the classic rock songs narrating the story, has become an integral part of the show. Dean is the strong emotionless type who likes to handle the big guns so he does not have to ask questions. Sammy, only called that by his brother, is the bigger sensitive researcher type who likes to ask the hard questions. Dean protects Sammy and Sammy internally combusts with angst. Meanwhile they are brothers and nag and pinch until one of them hits the other or they end up saving the day. In the most recent episode entitled "Tall Tales" a typical flashback episode where one remembers the story different from the other, I was on rolling on the floor laughing at the over exaggerated quips of these two men who have been together for far too long. Their situations are sometimes overly dramatic but there is a very consistent thread, family. It is this common thread with Buffy that gives the show the potential to be great. There is nothing like some horror demon to bring two different people even closer than their sibling blood will allow even if they are fighting it every minute. It is fun and funny. Give this show a try and you may end up feeling a little heartfelt all the while you are cheering their Rambo antics.

Score Tracks

Well, I finally got my score blog going. Basically it is a discussion of one track from a film score. I started with X-Men because I love that track and the death of Michael Kamen still floors me. He had some incredible scores. Enjoy!

Score Tracks

The Leaky Cauldron countdown

I saw this on The Leaky Cauldron and thought I could use it on my blog. I always need to know how long to wait! The countdown begins on the right sidebar.

I knew 2007 was going to be the year

The fact that 2007 ends in the most convenient of numbers (duh...the number seven) is just too much a coincidence for the last Harry Potter book not to be published. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows is set to be released July 21, 2007. This totally makes up for the really crappy two weeks I have been having.

JKR announcement

It's that time of year again...

31 Days of Oscar is the Turner Classic Movies tradition of airing a full month of Academy Award nominated and winning films. It has the added benefit of closing out my list of movies to watch. Check out this year's schedule.

It isn't easy being green

No, not Kermit but the irrevocable Green Arrow. It just so happens as I was watching Justice League Unlimited on DVD, courtesy of your friendly neighborhood Netflix, Smallville had a run of Oliver Queen episodes. The Smallville version of the Green Arrow was fun, if not a bit cheesy. He did a bang up job of wooing Lois Lane, getting Clark to climb out of that Lana funk and finally bring down the ever darkening Lex Luthor lab. Lex's patriotic speech gave me warm fuzzies to think of his potential presidential run. Oliver was charming and good looking but the outfit was a bit much for a Superman show with no tights. The last episode with a would be-Flash and Aquaman tried for a Justice League feel but the writing just was not there. I do want to say the slow motion group coming out of the fog thing was a nice touch.

Justice League Unlimted (JLU), on the other hand, has all the writing and character depth of a high class dramatic series. Personal storylines of heroes has become a favorite genre of mine which probably stems from my love of anime. There is nothing like angst to draw out the fan girl in me. The Green Arrow on JLU does not have a lot of angst but loves to voice his opinion as he shoots those loaded arrows with insane accuracy. He has the wit of Flash (another favorite character of mine) with the idealism of Batman, of whom there is no equal. A man with no super powers, the JLU Oliver Queen ends up being one of the most powerful characters on the show, cutting the original Justice League to their knees. What a guy. How can you not love him?

The AFI list dwindles

A little less than a year ago I had twenty movies left on the AFI list of 100 greatest movies. I just finished Apocalypse Now (2001 redux) which leaves 13 movies on this list which drives me insane sometimes. I hate not finishing something. Having watched Apocalypse Now means that I have completed the first 37 movies on the list, a great feat indeed. Most of the movies left are near the end and some are rather hard to find given there are some silent films. Of my most recent screenings I very much enjoyed The Third Man. A Carol Reed directed black and white classic, the visuals of this film are beautiful. Joseph Cotten played an excellent Marten, a seemingly fish out of water who then steals the show at the end, literally. Look for news as I finish the list entirely. I am going to have a big party that day.

Winter Storm 07

I love how they give the lead in to all day news coverage of the ice storm in Texas. Here is the picture stream of the ice that crippled the city this past week.

Snowing in Texas

Not a Hollow, Bleach the Bount arc

I took the opportunity of the winter storm to catch up on Bleach and in doing so finished the Bount arc. First, the arc was really filler. This means that it is not a part of the original manga. I guess the TV series moves too quickly and has to give the manga time to catch up and so creates its own story line to do so. While the big bad dude was a bit over the top in wanting to destroy the world, soul society, and the rest of his comrades, I like that there was a good comparison between his past and personality to Ichigo's. The final question gave the arc some resonance. What would Ichigo have chosen were he in Kariya's shoes?

Some other things that bothered me were Ishida's new outfit, soul society captains hovering in mid air, and the fact that no one actually was living in all the houses they destroyed in Seireitei. Still it was nice to see that the captains could hold their own and, after some perceptive observing, could easily finish off the Bount ryoka. One of my favorite fights was Tōshirō Hitsugaya against Koga. Even though Tōshirō had to bring out his bankai, he really just brought him down with one blow. It was a wow moment for me.

Throughout the arc, there were a few times that we saw Ichigo's hidden hollow come forth. These are scary moments for me and our hero. I know that there is some hidden power there that is either not under control or that wants to control him. I believe that near the end with Kariya, there was a different sort of power which came to the surface. I am eager to see the internal battle in our orange haired friend.

Who we did not see a lot of was Inoue or Chad. Two of Ichigo's devoted friends who ended up picking up pieces or running around. I hope they grow in the next arc. Who we did see a lot of was Kuchiki Byakuya. Man, this guy is the epitome of cool, both in composure and admiration. I love how he always looks bored with his opponent but can strike with impressive force at any given moment. This arc did show some touching vulnerability for his sister. I wonder if that is captured in the manga as well. We finally get to see an emotional facial expression near the end and it all focuses on Ichigo, a good moment for the series.

While there were some difficult holes in the plot, it was a damn fun ride with some pretty excellent fights both in the real world and in the soul society. Now that the series is back on track with the manga, the ride should get even more interesting. Bankai.

Snow in Texas!

And it's only 10 AM

Best line of the night: "Get me Jack Bauer, now!" - President Wayne Parmer

Best scene of the night: Jack breaking down after shooting Curtis, Assad being driven away, and a nuclear explosion rocking L.A.

Best feeling of the night: Knowing we have twenty more hours to get four more suitcase bombs and watch Jack come back.

Two hours never looked so good

I made the mistake of trying to work during the premiere of Jack Bauer's return. Alas, I missed the really good parts of the show, the little moments where Jack shows vulnerability. Luckily, a winter storm moved through Texas and I had some free time to rewatch 24. Besides the unbelievable recovery of Jack from two years of torture (would you really remember how to drive, let alone hot wire a car or shoot straight?), these two hours were chock full of hero goodness. He recovers from two years of silence to ask about Audrey and his daughter, gets tortured again only to find out he really will die for nothing and then rescues a terrorist from certain death to find he can not perform his CTU duties any longer. After five terrible 24 hour days, Jack has to remember what it means to be Jack Bauer. Something in which we get a chance to participate. Could anything be so much fun?

Incidentally, I do not know who the genius was that built all of Austin's roads above ground but it makes for some very hazardous driving. I witnessed a truck spin out this morning on the one mile ramp I have to take to work every day. That was fun to drive around. Then, leaving early to get home before things really started getting nasty as the temperatures dropped, I slipped on the ice in the garage and bruised my hands and knee. Despite my love of the winter, Texas just is not the place for it.

Afro Samurai

Set in a futuristic fuedal Japan, Afro Samurai is an animated series showing on SpikeTV of all places. After one episode, I am happy with the story, characters, and animation. I plan to continue watching.

Afro Samurai episode 1

Children of Men

I do not go to see movies very often as the he crowds tend to bother me. But Children of Men intrigued me. It had the hint of science fiction without all the hype of a special effects movie. It was the kind of movie that plays over and over in my mind and that is not necessarily a good thing.

Children of Men takes place in England in the year 2027. The population is infertile and the most of the children have died out in a flu epidemic. The youngest person on the planet has just died in a brawl. The Earth has gone to pot and one of the only places left is England, specifically London where we meet Theo, our unclaimed hero. There is also an influx of illegal immigrants and Britain has been forced to close its borders, capturing and caging refugees and resorting to a police state. Amongst its citizens are many groups both peaceful and revolutionary. One such group is the The Fishes led by Julian, Theo's ex-wife and mother of his dead son. Julian enlists Theo to help Kee, a West African refugee get to the coast. The result is a harrowing journey for all involved as Theo and Kee make their way through a war zone.

Alfonso Cuarón has brought about a very believable dystopia. Welcome details such as the scrolling bus ads and burning animals added greatly to is reality. I am not a fan of the handheld camera. My eyes like to focus and with this direction, things become blurry and you can not catch as many details. There was one instance, however, a very long shot as Theo tries to make his way into a building with the battle raging around him. He enters a bus full of people, most who are shot to death and the splatter hits the camera. Instead of a cut, the camera rolls with the blood reflecting the gruesome scene. It only enhanced the jostle of Theo as he dodges bullets and bombs. It was an interesting choice in direction. The movie was fettered with these scenes and, in fact, there was little time when things were not happening. The inactive scenes were what made the film. As an out of focus Jasper recounts the death of Theo and Julian's child, Theo stands forefront and we relive the grief in his eyes. The blend was a perfect scene which required no action nor any effects. There was no complete score to speak of but many of the songs complemented the tone of the film. Added to that was a high pitched sound which played every so often seeming to last too long. It was a recurring theme along with Theo's loss of shoes. Moving from designer shoes to bare feet, from flip flops to used tennis shoes successfully glued his morbid experiences to the audience. Overall, the film was a dreary telling of a possible future but resulted in an extraordinary piece of art. I do not regret seeing it in a theater.

Happy Birthday, Miyazaki-san

LibriVox

Man, did I stumble on to this. It seems that any book in the public domain can be recorded and distributed without penalty or fees. Someone took it upon himself to get volunteers to do this right, checking and double checking the recordings. Bravo and thanks for hours of enjoyment. Oh, and there are eBooks as well.

http://librivox.org/

Poor Jack

If you do not want a spoiler, do not read this. But oh, how I long for Jack's return.

Matt Roush's review of the premiere of 24

The New Jedi Order

I just finished the first book of this Star Wars series occurring 25 years after the destruction of the Second Death Star (more formerly known as the Battle of Yavin). Incidentally, I love the Christmas holidays when I can catch up on my reading. I was loathed to start it because the series consists of 24 books and I had read they were not all that fantastic. However, being a fan of most of the Star Wars novels, I wanted to give it a chance. Vector Prime by R.A. Salvatore was actually a pretty interesting novel and introduced a very cool dark race. However, a major character dies, one of the four which carried us through the first movie. I am not sure that I want to experience the fall out of that and so I am undecided on whether to continue. Also, not all the books are written by the same author so it seems very inconsistent. Still, I enjoy the Solo twins and the true capture of Lando as a character. And I would get to enjoy the expanded Star Wars universe and continue my fanaticism by continuing to read. I am just not sure what to do.

Avatar Book Two: Earth

I ended up watching the season finale of Avatar: The Last Airbender without knowing it. And things did not end well for Aang and the gang. It is horrible that we have to wait until July for its return. I suggest once again to catch this show on Nickelodeon. It is completely worth the time for its excellent fights, intriguing characters and riotous one liners!

Family Christmas

It was a good year. The time with family was spectacular despite catching a cold like always. Here lies the remnants of Christmas 2006 with my family.

Deathly Title

Not sure if it is a bad sign but Harry Potter book seven is entitled Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. What is a hallow? To me, it sounds like a place but it is actually a verb. From the American Heritage Dictionary:

hal·low (hăl'ō)
transitive verb

1. To make or set apart as holy.
2. To respect or honor greatly; revere.

No release date as yet.

How much fun is this?

Okay, I was not a big fan. I had a few of the major characters and had fun crashing them around. But my brother loved them. This looks pretty impressive.

Trailer

2006 Midseason TV

Ala Matt Roush's Top 10, I decided to subject others to my own commentary. I agree with a lot of what Matt said but 5 out the 10 shows I do not watch. Mine are in no particular order.

24: Old news as season 6 starts in one month.

Heroes: My new favorite show. Intrigue, comic book-like format, people with amazing powers, sex, drugs, and Hiro, this show has it all. The only problem is that it moves too slow. I need all these people to be together and fast. I like that the writers are not afraid of killing heroes but I wish they would kill off Niki. Her story line is so detached from the others. Finally, Hiro, the genuine, time warping, all-believing poster boy. He is probably the coolest thing about this show. The minute he gets that sword and slays the dragon, I am going to jump for joy.

Prison Break: Not my favorite show but certainly an entertaining one. Plus, Wentworth Miller is very hot. I like that this show went in a different direction this season and that Scofield loses it several times. The new bad guys are a plus too. I just wish the story would center around Michael's intelligence a little more and not creep me out as much with T-Bag. Killing off a lot of the escapee's has kept my interest piqued to see what happens next.

Supernatural: Speaking of brotherly love, this show holds near to my heart. Any show revolving around the metaphysical and family reminds me of the Joss Whedon Buffy and Angel days. The relationship of Dean and Sammy is heart wrenching at times and touching at others. The death of their father has taken its toll and they are still after the big baddie, whoever he is. This show also has a very cool relationship with classic rock and a chevy impala. The bad boy image works oh so well.

Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip: This show does not grab you but sort of eases you into its characters. It has taken a while to warm up to most of them and they finally stopped spouting political garb enough to have some fun episodes. The writing has only become better as it has matured and finally I question what will happen next.

Grey's Anatomy: I still tell myself I am a sap for watching this type of show. It has no real production value and I can not say the acting is anything special. It is mostly just eye candy on a dramatic scale. Still I can not help but cheer for Izzie and feel for George. I do not really like Meredith and only tolerate Cristina. It is just so interesting to watch the relationships grow and die on every new episode. It is hard to believe it is the third season.

Lost: Even though I have been frustrated to no end with this show, I still come back for more. They never answer any of our questions and this season they decided to separate the main characters. This is a recipe for disaster if you ask me. But major changes are in the making and hopefully we will have our castaways together again.

Ugly Betty: How can one not like this show. Betty probably represents a little of all of us, struggling to find herself in a world full of perfect people only to find out they are certainly not so perfect on the inside. Maybe it is the colors but it is a bright spot in my week when Betty shows up.

House: I told my mom that this show makes me uncomfortable and that is why I like it which is strange because I hate feeling uncomfortable. The only problem I have is that most of the characters are contradictory and inconsistent. It makes for a lot of drama but difficult to watch most of the time. It was harsh to see House so vulnerable in the last episode this year but from the premieres he looks like he will be back in top form after the break.

Veronica Mars: It satisfied with its sophomore season and now moves on to be a more mature series when Ronnie enters college. The format has changed slightly in that it is separated into three major crimes to solve and Veronica is up to the challenge. Now that she has suffered through uncovering the rapist she moves on to the murder of the dean. Let us hope she has help from Mr. Mars because they make a splendid team. Let us also hope Logan gets back to his snarky self.

Battlestar Galactica: I heard rumors that NBC was going to air this show rather than its sister network in the conglomerate, SciFi channel. But it seems that this was truly a rumor because this show is back on its parent channel in full force. Like Lost, it took the separation route putting half of our crew on the ground. Starbuck was a prisoner and Apollo grew fat. It was an interesting plan but was resolved more quickly and much more satisfying than Lost. Now we are all back together again, searching for food and fighting amongst ourselves. Here's hoping there is a big ass cylon battle soon. With production values through the roof, it is easily the best show on television.

Honorable Mention - The Nine: Prematurely canceled, this show had me enraptured from the very beginning. It is too bad it could not garner the ratings to help further quality television.

All his thoughts are bent on it

Turner Network Television (TNT) is concluding its very expensive purchase of The Lord of the Rings franchise this month. This weekend, they played The Fellowship of the Ring and The Two Towers. I must applaud TNT for broadcasting in true HD, even the commercials. It gives me so much joy watching such brilliant film making in glorious 1080i. Even my DVD player does not get that. I guess I need to upgrade one of these days. Next week they premiere Return of the King. How great would it be to play the trilogy at that time.

update: TNT is playing the entire trilogy next Sunday, December 17 starting at 12:30PM EST/11:30AM CST.

"Enter our hearts and make us fly...

My family has several holiday traditions. From food to gifts, on Christmas eve and Christmas day. It is a wondrous time full of family and memories. However, I have several personal holiday traditions too. Of course, they involve movies and music. Each season, I watch a list of movies with White Christmas the first and foremost. Then it is Miracle on 34th Street (black and white version only) and The Muppet Christmas Carol. On the animation side of things, I have to watch Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas, which is actually a combination of claymation and digital animation and 'Twas the Night Before Christmas, a silly little cartoon about a mouse and a clock tower and I watch it mostly for its ending song.

Along with the usual spout of Christmas music, I have to listen to "The Nutcracker" a couple of times and cassette version of The Cabbage Patch Kid Christmas, something you can not find in stores anymore. Then it is on to The Muppet Christmas Carol soundtrack and John Williams' glorious score to Home Alone. In this score riddled with holiday favorites, Williams makes my year every year with "Star of Bethlehem", a lovely song with lyrics by Leslie Bricusse and sung by a children's chorus. To me, Christmas is not Christmas without repeating this song several times over and feeling the special emotions it evokes in me.

Lyrics to "Star of Bethlehem"

I must be a geek

I sort of want to go to this. Prophecy 2007

Beyond Shirley

Shirley Walker, film and TV score composer, died today. She was 61. I love her score to "Batman Beyond" and "Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker". In fact, I was listening to this very score this morning during my cardio workout. RIP, Shirley. You will be sorely missed.

http://www.soundtrack.net/news/article/?id=872

May they all be white

Nothing says the Christmas season like 75 degrees in Texas. So when Turner Classic Movies aired White Christmas as part of their tribute to Irving Berlin, the DVR was programmed. I have a horrible obsession with this movie. First, it has a great title and the title song is sung by the incomparable Bing Crosby. Then you add Danny Kaye, one of the best comedic actors of his time and, at the time, bringing in just as much money as Bing at the box office. If there was ever poison in the vessel with the pestle, he could bring it to life. His crackly voice when paired with Vera Ellen are some of my favorite scenes. That and whenever he touches his life saving injury. Speaking of Vera, the choreography of her dances are extraordinary and every time she puts on those tap shoes, I want to get up and tap right along side her. Rounding out the cast is Rosemary Clooney. Sure, she can sing but her demeanor in this movie is pretty dull and almost detrimental. I would love to know the history of the cast working on this movie. A personal tradition during and between holidays, I can never get enough.

White Christmas (Paramount Pictures 1954) was directed by Michael Curtiz and was the first picture in VistaVision.

To my sister, a much devoted sister.

Remember me when

I love "Veronica Mars". The teenager, would-be private investigator has some of the wittiest writing on television today. The latest episode, "Lord of the Pi's", was a prime example of the all out, laughing on the floor, pop culture reference comments that the petite blond sprays at her friends and cohorts. I am so glad they had some father-daughter action because that was the highlight of the season. Tops the fake rape storyline by far. The only question I had was why did they dandilate the Dandy Warhols song, a favorite of mine before it was the show's opening song?

Tony: Something Special

Not much surprises me on TV anymore. Production values for television shows are so high these days that we sort of take quality for granted. However NBC premiered "Tony Bennett: An American Classic" to my great astonishment. Although it is not hard to make Tony sound good, I mean come on, Tony is something special, but the visual impact of this show blew me away. Directed by Rob Marshall, of Chicago fame, this Target sponsored show was soft when it needed to be and sophisticated at all times, the epitome of class. I was happy with the narratives and learned that Percy Faith, a closet idol of mine, was Tony's arranger. Tony represents my favorite time in jazz, the time when melodies ruled and creativity abounded. With concentration on pure instrumentalists and less on electronics, how can one not get up and swing around to Tony's syncopated voice sounding as fantastic as ever? If you missed this one, you missed out.

some Order, please.

Not released until July 2007, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix teaser trailer makes its debut on the web today, in high definition. My least favorite of the books and yet still a page turning, all out laughing read, I am still excited about the movie. A basically unknown director and composer leading a highly familiar story and musical series. What could be more news worthy?

I have to say, I am not very happy with the clean cut Harry Potter. His hair is too short for the unruly mess that Rowling describes in her books. But if Harry can have blue eyes instead of green, I guess we live with his portrayal.

HP OOTP trailer in high def

The Buckeyes and The Blue

In school, we read The Lantern, our school newspaper. During my first two years the paper would publish quotes and their source in the top right of the front page. My freshman year I remember distinctly seeing this:

"Go Bucks!" - too many to name

Ah the memories. Go Bucks, beat the blue.

Texas landscape

I miss the mountains. Every time I would visit my brother in Tennessee I would feel this rush of pleasure at the Smokies. As I would drive, the road was bordered by large forests of pine trees keeping secret the lives on the other side. In Texas, at least in the part that I live, there are no mountains. The scape is flat, teasing with its expanse. Along the road, the earth is spotted with single trees. It is beginning to grow on me, the romantic horizon along the road. But Texas will never fill this void I have for the grandeur of mountains.

Dancing away

My best friend, Diane was married to Todd last weekend. Along with the gorgeous colors and cold weather, the day was savored by friends and family alike. May they have happiness forever.

How many of me?

HowManyOfMe.com

There are: 7 people with my name in the U.S.A. How many have your name?

Welcome back, Appa

Yes, Appa is back. Appa is a six legged, 102 year old flying bison on the animated series, Avatar: The Last Airbender. Avatar is a charming show with fully developed characters, intriguing plot, and witty writing. It combines, like many series involving magic, the four powers of earth, air, water, and fire. Aang, the main character and best friend of Appa, is the avatar, the one person who has the ability to control all four. Of coures, he only knows air, water, and now a little earth bending. The fire bending nation, is the enemy and Zuko, the prince of the nation is now an outsider and coming to life as his own person. It is fun to watch. My favorite, along with Appa, is Sokka, who has no powers. He is the life of the party, always after the girls, and continues to make me laugh. This show and W.I.T.C.H., another show about the four powers, are some of the best animated television currently airing in the United States. I am baffled by the amount of animated shows I watch compared with live action TV. It has to be thirty percent. Who knew?

Final Mystery Project Update

It's finished. I can not believe it is finished. For eight months I have been working diligently for this present. I have to say, the final product is gorgeous. The yarn was amazing to work with and the pattern intricately beautiful. The only thing I have left is to put my tag on it and wrap it. There is only one problem with blogging and that is you can not touch anything. There are no words to describe the weight or softness of this bridal gift. It is a thing to cherish. One of my best efforts by far.

Halloween Galactica

I am not a fan of Halloween. It is way too difficult to figure out what to dress as and me and candy are a dangerous combination. Plus the TV becomes swamped with horror flicks, most of them so stupid that it is better just to turn off the tube for a while. So, glad it's over this year. But while I do not enjoy pictures of those dreadful pumpkin carvings or kids/adults in costumes, this toon is all it took to wash it all away. If you are not a Battlestar Galactica fan, become one. And if you are, this one will keep you laughing for at least a day.

Ben Folds at Stubb's BBQ

Only Austin would provide live entertainment at a BBQ joint. Truly, though, Stubb's is a major venue for bands, rock and indie alike. Ben makes an appearance this Friday. I am a huge fan of the pianist. He, in fact, makes my heart melt although I blissfully ignore the fact that he is from North Carolina. I have never seen him in concert but I am not a big fan of concerts in the first place. While thinking about booking tickets, the price made me frown. With fees I just was not willing to fork over the money for it. It's too bad, I was looking forward to hearing Ben sing to me.

Creative Meetings - Hollywood Style

While skimming my RSS feeds today, I came across this little gem about the minds behind The Lord of the Rings franchise, namely Peter Jackson and Fran Walsh, in their first meeting with Miramax and the Weinstein brothers. We've got to kill a hobbit. You pick one

It was then I thought to myself what idiots Hollywood people can be because "the number cruncher" Bob Weinstein made a huge mistake in letting that thing go. The Lord of the Rings grossed almost $3 billion internationally and had about an 800% return (source).

Disclaimer: No hobbits were killed during the making of this film.

Fire breathing beautiful

You know how I said Eragon was going to be big. Well, I think I underestimated its grandeur. From the looks of this amazing trailer, which is very impressive dialog-free piece of art, Eragon is going to hit the ground running. Eragon, himself, does not impress me but Saphira looks amazing. I hope they keep the spirit of the book. Saphira has a good sense of humor and the camaraderie, even familiar emotions, between her and Eragon are very moving. Do not miss its debut in the theaters on December 15.

http://www.apple.com/trailers/fox/eragon/traileri/

On a different note (hee hee ... pun), I am excited about Patrick Doyle's score to this film. His work on Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire was exceptional given that franchise's history. It will be interesting to hear his dramatic and action sequences for a different kind of dragon.

Wings on our heels

Chariots of Fire is the winner of four Academy Awards including Best Picture and Best Original Score.

It surprises me that the big beach scene with the big Vangelis music did not come until the end and only as a part of the credits. More surprising was the role of Gilbert and Sullivan as opposed to the Vangelis score I know well. I was able to watch this movie in HD this past weekend and not having seen it before did not know what to expect. But I had some suspect that 'the scene' of the runners on the beach was part of a training montage. I was disappointed in that aspect but pleasantly surprised in the impressive acting and genuine story telling of this movie. A must see for movie buffs like myself.

my little brother, the artist

Whenever I talk about Erich (yes there is supposed to be an h at the end), I always call him 'the artist'. I do not have titles for my other siblings but maybe because the rest of us are more average type people. Anyway, Erich has a lovely flash site which always amazes me. Check out some of his work and tell your friends.

http://www.tasteslikeburningdesign.com/

100th post about... the weather

Yesterday, I walked out of the building in which I work and caught my breath on 90 degree October. The humidity had caused condensation on the inside of the windows. Then, last evening a storm hit. The wind blustered through my chimney (do not get me started on why there are chimneys in Texas) and rain pelted the windows. My apartment creaked and swayed with the force of it. As I walked out this morning, the coolest breeze I have ever felt swept my hair in all directions and I broke into a smile. This is it. Fall has finally breached the long hot summer and believe me, it was very long and very hot. While Spring tends to bring people out of the winter's cages, fall gives me energy. I am now hopping for outdoor activities and anything to enjoy the weather. Only four months until summer starts :)

Memories of Nobody

Due December 16, 2006 in Japan which means that next week for fan sub version. Very exciting for this immaculate anime series.

Added some pictures

I added a link to some pictures on my "other" google page. Seriously, I am a google fanatic these days. Anyway, I am very proud of the projects album which contains several of my last knitting and crocheting projects. It does not seem like a lot because there are projects that are not included here. I need to hunt up those so I can really see how far I have come. Enjoy.

http://picasaweb.google.com/h.lazar

An unfortunate series ends

If you have had the unfortunate fortune to read Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events, then you have experienced a story which is bittersweet, a word here which means that the story is neither completely bitter nor completely sweet. It tells the tale of three young orphans who have continuous run ins with a terrible foe named Count Olaf. Throughout their unfortunate experiences, they find out many things about themselves, their unfortunate dead parents, and the mysteries which surround the terrible things in the world. However, in the telling of this tale, these three young orphans, the Baudelaires, are some of the wittiest, a word here which means extremely funny at some of the most inappropriate times, children in such a story. Every book made me laugh out loud at their remarks. That along with Olaf's blatant naiveté and utter evilness makes for one heck of a yarn (see chapter 8 of The End for the two definitions of this word). The end of this series comes slowly and not altogether complete as the end of the end is supposed to be a beginning though not a bad a beginning as the series begins, namely The Bad Beginning. But as a lot of people say, it is the journey that is important. In The End, the children discover themselves and close their grief. I have since acquired the entire unfortunate series in a lovely box set. This is also something attractive about the series in that the books are hardbound with lovely illustrations of each of the 170 unfortunate chapters, as stated by Mr. Snicket, himself. Mr. Snicket also states that no one should read this unfortunate series but despite those words, I think I will read them all over again.

Hiro the hero, Egan the earnest

Fall TV has begun and two new shows have stood up as winners. The first is Heroes. Along with previous years' favorites, this is my most looked forward to show of the season. Heroes combines the ordinary lives of several people when they become extraordinary. The powers among them: flight, regeneration, premonition, teleportation, telepathy, and a few others we have not figured out yet, are going to come together to save the world. The first question that pops into my head is where did these powers come from and why? Why them? And of course, in any serial drama, what happens next? Well the audience is aware of the bad guy and aware that at some point they are going to meet. This makes it all the more exciting and all the more eager for it to happen. These people are now just figuring out something is different (conveniently all at the same time) so we need to give them time to do so. But, in the only quirk I have with the show, I want it to happen more quickly. I need to see the relationships between these people. I am impatient. That's the story and characters, let's talk production value. I am watching in HD so it looks amazing. I would like to see a bit more flash and more risk taking with the editing and direction. It helps that the main focal point is New York, a city born and bred for cinematography. Back to the characters, my favorite has to be Hiro. How can you not like this guy? He takes on his power by storm and has this optimistic view of everything, even with his shift into a nuclear future. He has become the poster child for this show and beckons all to come and watch.

Egan is the lonely insurance salesman on the show, The Nine. I did not think I would like this show because it was completely about a horrible 52 hours as a bank hostage. However, the characters captivated me at once. Again, this show is about relationships and how they have grown out of these strangers. I like how any one of the the nine (really it is eight survivors) can call on another one of the nine for a favor. They are all gathered in their complicated lives trying to survive yet again through something more tragic than anyone knows. It is moving, truly. Underscoring their lives is the past, this huge elephant bleeding on the floor of a bank and the knowledge that something happened in there the audience has yet to determine. We learned one such thing this past episode. The youngest, the child of the bank manger, called 911, a catalyst for the standoff. This horrible realization comes booming down on the girl who could not remember anything of those days and it literally floors her. That was a dreadful moment and I felt that poor girl's pain. The editing of this show is very good. The flashes of 'bank time' are grainy and occur frequently to all the characters not only giving the audience clues to its mystery but indicating that these people are still there, still living through it. In this tragedy of a story, Egan stands out as a hero and a person with a second chance on life. He is the movement of the story, the true life of these people. I love his little jump for joy in the courtyard after he is fired from his job. I love to watch him interviewed as a hero and comforted by his fellow victims. His character makes the show watchable and the pain bearable.

Disney's Second Golden Age

With the re-release (or is that re-re-release) of The Little Mermaid, I thought back to what I consider Disney's second golden age. Of course, its first golden age was that of the 30's-50's when Snow White, Pinocchio, Dumbo, Cinderella, and Sleeping Beauty hit the big screen. So incredibly beautiful with simple songs of white knights and prince charmings. It is not to say that there have not been incredible Disney animated and live action films since these times but these were the start of big Disney, golden Disney, royal Disney. The Little Mermaid arose as a quietus. The animation was novel and extensive, the story engaging yet simple, and the music was above much that had been composed prior and at the helm were Alan Menken and Howard Ashmen. The score, in fact, won the Academy Award for Best Original Score in 1990. I popped this CD into my car yesterday after picking up the DVD up from my local Target. I had forgotten how impressive was the music to this movie. Both the melodies and the lyrics were exciting and poignant. I smiled as I sung along wisping through the memories that the music evoked. To say they do not make them like they used to is not correct. This was how it used to be. And Disney, despite its heavy handed commercial dominance, created several pieces of art thereafter including Beauty and Beast, which to me, is superior in art and music. After listening to the mermaid, I was set to put in beast but frowned as I found my disc missing. Time to convert these thoughts to actions and go out to purchase another one.

Rest in peace, Howard Ashman

'Cause how you get there is the worthier part.

Kaywinnit Lee "Kaylee" Frye: So, um, how come you don't care where you're going?
Book: 'Cause how you get there is the worthier part.

That's right, Firefly is back and in high definition on the Universal HD channel. Despite having been four years since this show aired, I can watch it again and again, and I have. I remember watching the first episode on my mom's 32" TV and struggling with heartbreak when the show aired its last episode on my little 27 incher. Now that I have my lovely plasma widescreen with HDMI, I can enjoy in luxury what is probably the best series ever to grace the 'tube'.

Mystery Project Update: International Knit Kit

I have been working on this project for several months now and this stuff has traveled through Texas and even internationally. My homemade large print pattern and scratches for easy "where am I now" reading have been the biggest gem along with my little purple markers made from old yarn. I just had to capture it for memory so that ages from now I can come back and say, "Oh yeah. That was what I was doing the summer of 2006."

 

SoundtrackNet News The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers - The Complete Recordings to be released on Novemvber 7, 2006

You know, I have had several major things happen in my life lately, the least of which was Ohio State kicking the crap out of a certain school located in the city in which I live (we do not say its name - Volde...). However, the thing that finally got me to get back to blogging was this:

The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers - The Complete Recordings to be released on November 7, 2006

November 7 can not come soon enough. Not available for preorder yet.

SST

I love acronyms.

That aside, SST stands for http://www.streamingsoundtracks.com/ , an audio stream to which I constantly listen. They just revamped their site so it loads much faster now and the javascript never gives me an error anymore. As I was listening today, one of the tracks from "Lost" played, entitled 'Charlie hangs around'. Being a huge fan of the show, I am always astounded by the beautiful melody that Giacchino created. When you hear the theme played throughout the album and you finally come to 'Parting Words' which is the theme posed as a question stated by the piano with a lovely violin answer. At this point I am in tears. Thank goodness that there is music such as this to fill my life with wonder.

"Lost" is composed by Michael Giacchino and is available on Varese Sarabande Records, copyright 2004.

Dallas/Fort Worth data. Well, except for the 7th of this month, we have been hovering above 100 degrees high temp. Note the 105 a few days ago and the trend upward. Just thought everyone would like to know.

Mystery Project Update

I never understood blocking until now because this project desperately needs it. I am fortunate to have a bar over my kitchen sink which fits each section perfectly. This is the third section I have finished and displays the wrong side (so the person receiving this can not tell what it is!). One more and it will be time to put it all together. I am looking forward to the end product.

Somebody kill me, please!

Are you kidding me?

What a piece of work.

Clarett

The BSO does Star Wars, sort of

A combination of Star Wars music, legos, and the Dark Lord of the Sith with a red lightsaber. Could there be anything more perfect? Note the Empire logo on the curtains, what a nice touch.