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26 May 2012

This time last year I was in Winnipeg on the U2 360° tour.

This year, austerity measures in the People's Republic of Mattopia dictate a focus on the homeland for the summer. It's a bummer summer, but it's best for the long run. And results are already being seen.

For years - for far too long - I've been dealing with crapped up sinks in my bathrooms; chipped enamel and crummy old faucets. I've been planning some significant renovations, including spiffy new countertops and integrated sinks, but the stock market keeps that effort at bay. (After all, a U2 tour is much more sexy and exciting than any kind of countertop. One must maintain one's priorities.) The junky old stuff has been a sore point, the kind that brings down morale in the otherwise grand and upbeat PRM.

While fixing the toilets and installing the latest and greatest in toity tech last weekend, it finally occurred to me that a nice temporary fix would be to simply pull out the current faucets and sinks and plug in some nice new stuff.

This I did today. In a fairly decent amount of time, both sinks and faucets, along with the supply lines and related p-traps were all ripped out and replaced by my very own hands.

Now my business card can read "Writer. Web Developer. Warrior. King. Plumber."

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6 May 2012

The Avengers turned out to be a winner after all. I'm not a fan of Joss Whedon's own creations, so it was a relief to see him respect the source material created by others as he crafted a really good movie based on the union of several of Marvel's A-listers.

The movie has a great sense of humor throughout and an abiding affection for all of the characters. Black Widow's interrogation being interrupted by an urgent phone call? Funny. The Hulk tossing Loki around like Raggedy Andy? Very funny. Lots of great banter between the characters, with Tony Stark being the lead quipster.

But the funniest bit of all was a post-credits gag involving shawarma.

Granted, I haven't been involved in any world-saving adventures, at least not in the literal sense. But I have had long days on the road that blended into long nights that in turn were capped off with shawarma. I could relate to Stark's dazed look and collapsed posture. That scene exemplified the Marvel universe of extraordinary characters in an ordinary world.

As much as I enjoyed The Avengers, though, I do wish there was a more engaging climax. It's not that the action was bad per se, although it was a little too reminiscent of Saturday morning cartoon action. There was an odd lack of urgency. Sure, New York City was getting crushed. But... there was a detachment to it all and the climax ultimately failed to live up to the fairly exquisite and nearly pitch-perfect two hours preceding it.

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26 February 2012

The Oscars were pretty lackluster. No really inspirational speeches, no really big surprises. It was incredibly dopey to have only two songs nominated for Best Song (because of a stupid rule change that hopefully won't be back next year). And it was hard to get excited about the Best Picture nominees. War Horse was my dark horse favorite and, well, it came up empty.

But there were a couple highlights from my corner of the world.

I was delighted Rango won for Best Animated Film and I thought 82-year-old Christopher Plummer gave a really impressive, humorous acceptance speech.

And, of course, I appreciated seeing Robert Downey, Jr., Tebow before going on stage with Gwyneth Paltrow. His skit kinda stank up the place, but it was still fun to see Robert be Robert.

Now to get back to my own screenplay project. Gotta get it out there and change the future history of the moving image.

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26 February 2012

I really like where I live. It's close to downtown, but it's also close to wildlife, and I don't mean wild parties and night clubs.

The following e-mail received from the property management folks brought a smile to my face:

"We have received several reports recently of coyotes on the property. The on-site maintenance man has reported that they are mating today and acting more confrontational than normal. We wanted to remind everyone to be aware of and cautious around the coyotes. Please follow the link below to learn more about living with coyotes in an urban environment."

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15 February 2012

I thought maybe I was missing something when it came to Jon Gruden and his "work" on Monday Night Football. He's been ruining the Monday night ritual for me; I'd describe the guy more as a cheerleader than a man of valuable football insights. But then again, he won a frickin' Super Bowl so he should know something, right?

Well, now things are coming into focus. Co-commentator Ron "Jaws" Jaworski is out. The following Yahoo! Sports post by Chris Chase summed it up well:

"He (Jaworski) became a carnival barker, not a football analyst. That may have been his own doing or based on the suggestions of ESPN producers. Regardless, the mentality to promote the game rather than describe it, which seems to be shared by Tirico and Gruden, is a big reason why 'Monday Night Football' has become borderline unwatchable in recent years. It's not a football game anymore; it's a promotional vehicle. (That's only going to get worse when Gruden is given a bigger stage.)"

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