1,009 thoughts on “Choose again.”

  9. The teen girl in this house will be happy to hear that Peter Parker lives on and will be coming to a theater near her next summer!

    Unless the trailer I just watched was a fake.

    It is a really good fake.

    • Law of unintended consequences. It’s interesting to note now how the tendrils of those are spreading. Delta Airlines has already reported how many millions they’re losing just this quarter from canceled flights of Fed employees and their contractors. As the corporate world starts to feel the pinch from this … perhaps something will get done.

      • … And since were playing billiards.
        I just read an article (that I can’t find now), on 3 ways Trump could reopen the government and place the blame for not getting his wall, squarely on the shoulders of Congress and or the court system. Thus allowing him to save face with his base.
        The problem is he is not looking for a way out. He’s just looking for a “win“ for Trump.

        • If enough big corporations feel the pain, then that might have an effect. McConnell, trump, et al have never spent a minute of their lives concerned about the poor and middle class folks who are really feeling the effects of this.

  21. Haircut appointment made. Enough is enough – – we’re going short. Probably very short.

    If this kept going, I’d end up looking like Devin Townsend in his Strapping Young Lad days.

  23. S2 of Discovery got off to a good start.

    It was actually nice to see the actor playing Pike Smile after his misery guts stint on inhumans.

    • I must confess, given what little I saw of him in Inhumans, I was concerned about him filling the role of Pike – but he definitely brought an A game to this first episode.

      Not sure yet how I feel about the bait and switch nature of this episode after the first season finale. Still, promising start.

  29. On a different note
    We still very much enjoy The Orville. However, we were sad to see … leave. Hopefully it’s not permanent as we liked that character.

  30. Have Discovery on our PVR but haven’t watched any of this season yet. We’ll probably watch it tomorrow.
    I wasn’t a big fan of its first season so I’m hoping it will do better this season

  31. Your do seem to have the minority opinion about ST:D, TEB. That’s one I’d like to see.

    I did not get through episode 1, season 1 of The Orville. It was terrible. But I know that most say it becomes really good later on, so maybe I’ll give it another chance in the future. (the future – ha!)

  33. Absolutely plowed through season 3 of Daredevil. My God what a breathtaking, enjoyable, heart-wrenching season this was. This is The Empire Strikes Back to season 2’s Phantom Menace. Highest recommendation

  34. And fuck you, Apple. You’re like Democrats. . . Just horrendously awful, but you seem great compared to the other terrible major alternative.

    /venting

  35. We watched Annihilation tonight.

    I was into it, excited for its possible explanation, liked the visuals of inside the Shimmer, but then it (mostly) fell apart for me.

    I think it is one of those flicks that has layers, that need to be peeled back.

    :shrug:

    • A massive departure from the book. Well done, but still kind of a middle finger to Jeff Vandermeer, because it left out massive major plot points.

      • So, do you recommend the book? We saw the movie and mostly enjoyed it, but I’ve never gone and added the books to my “need to read list”

        • I do recommend the “Annihilation” book. It’s bizarre, but fascinating. You keep wanting to learn more about the mysterious Area X and the stuff they find.

          “Authority,” Book 2, OTOH, was so disappointing that I haven’t bothered to go back and read the final book in the trilogy.

  45. While I appreciate the fuller picture being formed around the MAGA boys surrounding the Native American chanter, and I do agree that they weren’t the only ones being shitheads that day, the fact of the matter is that they WERE still being shitheads. Those calling for compete exhonoration of the boys and trying to force apologies are doing the exact same thing as those that they are calling out for lashing out at the boys.
    This is why we can’t have nice things. It always has to be one group being shit heads and one group being not. It’s rarely ever all sides in most people’s opinions. You don’t always need to pick a side, it doesn’t have to always be black and white, and people of all races and backgrounds can be (and usually are) shitheads.

    • I’m going to keep most of my thoughts to myself on this whole shit-sandwich, but one thing I need to get off my chest: I’ve read that the boy front-and-center in the video has claimed he was trying to diffuse the situation. I find that to be utter nonsense. Both his facial expression and body language are nothing like what someone would do when trying to diffuse a bad situation. I’ve found the explanations on both sides to be wanting. Enough said.

      • I’ll expound on the bigger picture separately, but on the specific –
        “Both his facial expression and body language ”
        Yes.
        That may be what drew such vicarial immediate reactions. Because if you were one of about 85% of the guys in my Jr. High or High School … you have seen that face. You have personally been singled out by that smug SOB in front of his jeering todies. … and while he may have never actually done more than finally shove you, the threat was there. It was very real and he was doing everything he could to make YOU escalate he situation because YOU were out numbered and alone.
        I have been there. I have seen “that” face and I can assure you that kid was not trying to be a witness for Christ.

        • Those kids were there looking for trouble. And they found it. They’re bullies, not victims.

          That said – – I also make no excuses for the guy who got in the kid’s face with his drum.

          I will say: a showdown between smug spoiled brats and an aggressive Native American drummer at a rally is far less important than the showdown between the smug spoiled brat in the White House and the rest of decent humanity.

          The picture of that smug little shit provoked emotional responses in us all, but really, this incident is just a distraction from the big picture.

          • Agreed. I think you’ll find more and more “distractions” like this forming the longer certain people run the White House and Congress.

            And btw yes, if those smarmy shiteads were wearing Obama Hope hats instead of Maga hats I’d be saying the exact same thing and have the exact same opinion of them

          • I haven’t watched any of the videos of the confrontation but read a few points and counterpoints. I don’t know who to blame but feel that Lo has the right approach, it is more likely that there were bad actors on both sides. That said, what bothers me more is how incidents like this are being reported. It seems that in the media’s (left and right wing) want to cash in on how much outrage a single image or sound bit can generate. More clicks, more advertisers’ dollars and as a result, we are being fed a distorted image of reality.

          • Looking for trouble? By waiting for their bus to come pick them up?

            Though, it is proper that you use the word “provoked” because the framing of that picture and the cut of the original video clip were designed to do exactly that.

            I posted it in response to Lo Pan on Facebook (and I see he responded, so I’ll carry on here and we can leave Facebook alone) but it’s worth noting here as well that CNN started digging into the twitter account that kicked off this mess. The results proved most interesting.

            https://www.cnn.com/2019/01/21/tech/twitter-suspends-account-native-american-maga-teens/index.html

            Now, could the kids have responded better to Nathan Philips and the Black Hebrew Israelites provocations? Probably. But nothing in their reactions has justified the unhinged response against them. Their school was closed today because of a number of threats that have been coming in to the school all weekend. One kid who wasn’t even there, but was incorrectly identified as the kid in the picture has had his life threatened, along with his family, their business, even out to extended family.

            Even after Philips account from Saturday was pretty thoroughly debunked by the longer video that became available Sunday, too many are still anchored to that initial reaction. I understand that, it’s a hard thing to shake. At this point, I have no sympathy for Philips. He clearly lied in his statements Saturday, expecting that the video and picture from his followers would be the only one seen. He got caught and at this point I have no reason to believe anything he has to say about the situation. Nothing in his actions on the video suggests he was trying to defuse anything.

            What’s truly frightening about this situation is what those kids would be dealing with today if that other video hadn’t turned up. If these kids entire futures had become defined by a carefully cut video clip and close cropped picture setup to make monsters out of them.

            Now, if folks want to put some blame on the kids, particular for responding a “mocking” fashion to Philips, fine. Counsel them then, but don’t pretend that their behavior in the situation was remotely comparable to what was directed at them.

          • Ed, you ignorant slut!

            I’m fine with keeping the debate going here rather than FB, where no one is going to devolve into insults, condescension, etc.

            If folks would like a separate thread for yuppie scum vs native drum, I can accommodate.

          • Correct me if I’m wrong, but AFAIK, the Covington kids were there in their MAGA hats to protest a different event. They then got into it with a different group. . . (the Black Israelites?) It’s unclear who started that bitchfest, but whoever did, the MAGA kids behaved poorly. This, in turn, compelled Phillips to get in the face of one of the bullies with his drum.

            Do I have any of that wrong? It’s possible that I’m the ignorant slut.

          • It seems, Ed, that you truly are having trouble putting any blame on them. You use “mocking ” in quotes as if you truly believe they weren’t. You use “probably” when asking if they couldn’t have handled it better. Of course they could have. All 3 groups are culpable, don’t you for a deck think one is less than another.
            As far as the aftermath and death threats and such, of course that’s terrible. Of course I shouldn’t be happening to anyone. But that right there is life in America in a nutshell right now. Do you really think the other two groups aren’t getting the same? Of course they are. You realize Ed that unwarranted death threats happen every day. It’s just not normally against straight white males.

          • I’ll make one last go on this to address a few things.

            The kids were there that day, along with about 600,000 others, for the March for Life rally that they had attended earlier that day. After the rally, they had broken up into smaller groups to do some touring and had been directed to show up at the monument by a given time (I think about 5:30) to wait for their buses to take them home.

            The Black Hebrew Israelites, as they call themselves, are apparently a hate group similar to the Westboro Baptists and had been making vulgar callouts to people all day and turned their attention on the boys. They specifically hurled verbal abuses at a black student in the group and the boys responded.

            Then Nathan Philips, who was there that day for the Indigenous People’s March, came into the picture. The later video makes it clear, contrary to his original account, that he was the one (along with several others of his group, who were conveniently rolling video) to approach and move in on the group of boys. The picture labeled as MAGA kid gets in the face of Native American is quite the opposite. Philips is the one who targeted the boy and got up in his face, pounding on his drum. Now, the boy is supposed to be crucified for smiling.

            The boys can be seen dancing to the drumming. Folks have interpreted it as mocking. I can see that point of view. But, considering the taunting they had already been facing from the Black Hebrew Israelites and Philips just coming in and drumming in there faces, never making any effort to engage them in communication – I can’t fault them for their reaction.

            Let’s be clear about a couple of things. On Saturday, the claim was that these boys had shown up to protest and harass the Indigenous People’s March – that is demonstrably false. The claim was made that the boys sought out and surrounded Nathan Philips. That is also demonstrably false. That’s two big strikes against those who spun and propagated the initial narrative.

            So, you’re right, I don’t see these boys as being anywhere near the same level of culpability for what happened that day as Mr. Philips and the Black Hebrew Israelites are. We’re just not going to agree on that one.

            This fellow put together a pretty comprehensive report on Sunday drawing from multiple sources that breaks the narrative that was spun on Saturday.

            https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EZTDIoywwGk

            On Sunday morning, after reading posts from Lo Pan and some others, I was certainly disappointed in the apparent behavior. But after Sunday evening, I was pretty incensed at the hit job that had been put on them.

          • You’ll forgive me of I don’t take the word of some YouTuber I’m not familiar with JUST like I’m not, currently, taking the word of super left leaning site claiming to have video of the boys harrassing and threatening to take women on the mall. I’m really trying to see the big picture here. That being said “hit job” my skinny white ass. You’re making them into utter martyrs. Which, I admit, more than makes sense.
            This is all for me tonite as I am about to engage in furlough drinking and my judgment will be more, let’s say, militant and less moderate.

          • Lo Pan, you ignorant slut!

            I appreciate the tone and the facts and even the sources for the biased facts, gentlemen. I think we can all agree that the initial reports were way over hasty. And I think the image of a bullying smirk under a MAGA hat caused the conclusion jumping.

            Most importantly though (to me), is that the more people focus on this, the less they focus on trump holding the govt hostage over his wall. That’s the higher priority, IMHO.

  48. I have no doubt that in less than 2 years Ryah and Van will literally be watching America burn. At least they’ll have this forum to talk to each other to.

    No wait …

  49. I have no doubt that in less than 2 years Ryah and Van will literally be watching America burn. At least they’ll have this forum to talk to each other to.

    No wait …

  61. Stupid website updates. Stupid anthology call for submissions making me update the website. Stupid authors asking for rights back making me update the website. Stupid authors receiving accolades for stories making me update the website.

    In case you haven’t figured it out, I’m doing website updates today.

  73. I’m gonna ask over at FB too, but I’ll start here:

    This is a thing for my work podcast:

    What’s your favorite healthy activity or exercise?

    (Note: I’m going to read people’s answers on an upcoming ISH podcast episode. Let me know how you’d like your name to read, or if you’d like your answer to be anonymous.)

    • I wouldn’t say it was my favourite (that was walking) but I’m reduced to using an excercise bike to slow muscle wastage on the leg with a dodgy knee.

    • I walk a lot because it’s what I have the most opportunity for – but I also prefer biking, particularly when the weather is good.

    • There is my favorite exercise … and then there is the ones I actually get to do.

      I try to get 20 minutes of cardio stressing exercise 3 days a week and since I’m all dressed for the occaision, I add some core and strength.
      As with others I find that biking is the easiest on my knees, hips.
      To avoid using weather as an excuse not to do that work … I utilize a stationary bike at my gym.
      To keep from losing my mind to the tedium of 20 minutes on the bike, I will intersperse the riding with 5 minutes to 10 minutes on a rowing machine.
      After that, as a minimum, on day 1 I will do some upper body with dumb bells. Day 2 I will do core work. Multiple sets of sit-ups/leg lifts and the like.
      If I make it to 3 sessions in a week I reward myself with a session of bench press. Hey … you get to do that laying down!
      Also – before during and after there is a lot of stretching. A LOT.

  76. The Democrats as well as every single news Outlet need to shut the hell up right now about Trump caving. This is exactly how the shutdown started when Fox News pissed him off. He’s liable after these three next week to shut down the government for an entire year if they don’t shut the hell up

  79. Alright, I just finished the last season of “A Series of Unfortunate Events” on Netflix.

    https://www.netflix.com/title/80050008

    I have never read the books, so I came in with no fore knowledge. I tuned in due to Neil Patrick Harris as the lead. It was quite a ride and I definitely recommend it. It’s only three seasons that in total are about 25 episodes, so it’s not a massive amount of time to binge.

    • Agreed Ed. I had no idea about any of it and this was mos def the series that was #1 at family watching time. It was also the only show that was at family watching time but that’s neither here nor there…

      It’s a goddamn delight

    • Ed and Lo, you ignorant. . . Wait.

      Do you know which books the series covers? We read #1 many moons ago. We all liked it, but I thought it was a wee bit dark for elementary school kids.

      • Jack, you ignorant slut – what Lo Pan said!

        Yes, season 3 dropped January 1? I think. Anyway – just saw that this past week and proceeded to gobble them up.

        And yeah – no previous contact with the books. Though, what I’ve read says they are a pretty close adaption, with changes to the show generally considered improvements – but you’ll always have book purists who won’t tolerate any change, so there’s that.

  89. So, I’m cancelling my 20-year+ endorsement of Bill Maher, and yes it’s about the Stan Lee thing. Not the initial thing, but his shitty doubling-down rant this past Friday.
    I’m not done with him because I disagree with his comments (although I do). . . I’ve disagreed with many things he’s said over the years, but I’ve always respected where he was coming from.
    Not in this case.

    After Ebert said “video games aren’t art,” back in the 2000s, he engaged the counter-arguments and acklowledged the valid points made, and even acknowledged that he might have been in error. He learned from the whole thing, didn’t just fold his arms and insist that everyone agreed he was right.

    In this case, Maher is just being a condescending, small-minded dick, looking down on anyone who’s able to find deeper meaning in comics, YA books, or any art he finds to be “beneath him,” which is pretty ironic coming from a stand-up comedian.

    It’s a shame, because I often found him to be hilarious, and the most spot-on about the big issues. His talking points often helped me to crystallize my thoughts on slippery topics.
    I’m sure he will be funny and right about plenty of things again, just without my endorsement.

    • I’ve at times found him funny and inciteful and at other times a condescending jerk. I haven’t listened to him opine on Stan Lee, but I find it pretty ridiculous to criticize one form of entertainment over another. A student of mythology and a fan of graphic novels may have a lot in common for instants.

    • I say “meh” on him.
      Comics are books with pictures … or if you prefer, they are movies in which the frames move at the speed in which YOU advance them.
      Does he hate books? Does he hate movies? This is just a different format of either one of those.

        • I suspect that we’re already over-saturated with the “classic filmland monsters,” and that, while no one was against a new, awesome take on Dracula, Frankenstein’s Monster, Wolfman, etc., no one was really all that excited for it.

          And nothing says “We’re not even trying, we just want your money” more than a crapfest (per all critic and audience reviews) starring fucking Tom Cruise.

        • I think they would have been better off treating the Brendan Fraser Mummy movies as their canon and then brought him in on a Wolfman or Frankenstein project to build the “universe”

  106. BTW the fact that a Marvel film is up for best picture is phenomenal. Even if I don’t think it’s the best Marvel film (it’s close) it’s an amazing leap for the genre.

    Now, here’s where people tell me it’s only nominated because of left wing propaganda…

    • It is a fascinating bit on Star Wars history. . . but I’d assume that many, many movies get pieced together and changed like this during the final edits. A lot of books get written this way too.

      The video also feels slightly like it’s taking part in this modern mindset that George Lucas never had a clue, and that he was always a bumbling fool who just lucked out with Star Wars and partially Raiders (and American Graffiti), which bothers me.

      My alternate theory: he was a brilliant, dedicated young filmmaker, but megagianthuge success changed him. His priorities and sensibilities shifted, and he was surrounded by Yes Men who wouldn’t stand up to him about his so-called “improvements” in the Special Editions, or his out-of-touch, weak storytelling in the prequels.

      • My own pet theory is that as he got older, his desire to push the envelope withdrew and he got complacent and he started to see “Star Wars” a series for kids. I think “THX 1138” and “A New Hope” are tonally more alike than “A New Hope” and “Phantom Menace”.

    • OK phew. . . . I like him a lot, but I’d be concerned if he was being cast as Paul Muad ‘Dib. Oscar will be an excellent Duke Leto.

      It looks like they’ve cast an actual teenager as Paul this time, which is true to the book!

  110. Hi, Deadpan! The other day (Monday), I had a weird dream that I thought you would find amusing.

    I was in a hotel/convention-center complex doing something work-related, at a time when there just happened to be a nerd convention there, too. I was walking through the halls and the enclosed walkways between buildings in my office clothes, while lots of people around me were in costume. Among those people, I ran into Ed from Texas, dressed in full Iron Man armor (minus the mask), made of bright red and yellow craft foam. We were very surprised and happy to see each other, especially since I had no idea he even had that costume. :silly:

  114. Today’s movie is The Doll

    The Netflix elevator pitch: it’s got a mind of its own, and it’s ready to end them both. This is no ordinary doll – it’s a demon in disguise

  169. Movie’s over

    I was ok with this one. The connection between the beginning of the movie (in the non-sorority house) and the rest took a bit of time to figure out. They never did explain it, I just had to make my own guess and assume it’s correct

  176. I forgot to mention that I picked up Dark Knight III: The Master Race on sale, based on the glowing reviews from trusted online hipster sources.

    Sigh. . .

    A couple of badass moments, but for the most part, Meh. One of the biggest problems: a lot of it is – – wait for it – – juvenile.

    All readers should just stick to the first Dark Knight Returns. Leave the sequels alone.

  177. Sort of billiards but really more of a timely FYI.
    (I want to make sure everyone knows this tech physically exists and is already in use.)

    One of the (many) things that drives me nuts about spending 7 billion to build a medieval defense system along our southern border …
    I PERSONALLY know someone who works for a company that makes a product called “Ground Aware Radar”.
    It was specifically designed to detect vehicle or foot traffic in given area. It can discriminate between a human and wild life.
    It is a small, portable, autonomous system that can instantly send out alerts as sms or email messages.
    ONE unit can provide surveilance for 2000 acres at a cost of less than $60 an acre and they have units ready to deploy NOW.
    Trump’s fence was estimated (2 years ago) to cost 3.9 million a mile. His wall has been estimated to cost 7.4million a mile.

    This wall would take many months or years to contruct.
    They could start deploying these units in a mater of days.

    This isn’t sci-fi or experimental. They already have several utility companies that use these to monitor the acreage around their remote facilities. Also, a MAJOR US airport … located outside of the city it is associated with has used these systems for years to monitor the vast acreage of prairie that surround it.

    So yeh. If you DID believe that we are being over run by vast hoards out in the dessert, to the level of EMERGENCY … there is a MUCH more cost effective way to deal with it.
    If trump was actually looking for the solution to a problem, rather than grasping for justification to build his wall … there are much better answers than burying $7billion in the desert.

    https://dynetics.com/groundaware/

    • But can el presidente orange put his name on that radar in giant capital letters? I don’t think so. Can that radar get the drooling masses cheering? Can it intimidate brown people, and let them know that a segment of the population thinks they don’t belong here?

  183. Currently chocked full of NERVOUS ANTICIPATION.

    My eldest competes in a big time Track Meet in an hour @ Texas Tech.
    Last week she got a new PR that was 1.5″ short of the NCAA provisional qualifying mark for her sport. SOOOO close!
    Ack!
    Can’t think about it.

  194. Had birthday dinner with my Boo last night. She always wants to go to the best steak house in Calgary. Since it’s only once a year, we take her. My tummy is still stuffed with goodness.

  195. Thanks for the well wishes for my daughter.
    Things didn’t turn out the way we had hoped but failure occurred in a positive direction so … there is that.
    Quick primer – Pole vaulting poles come in a wide variety of lengths and stiffness. Longer ones allow you to hold higher to start with (higher is always the goal) but the longer they are the farther away from the pit you have to be able to jump from … requiring much more speed.
    Like an archers bow, the stiffer it is the more power it has to throw something when it unloads. So you use the stiffest thing your strength can handle.
    Apparently my daughter showed up totally amped and went with a pole longer than she has ever been able to use in practice … and over bent it. Two times in a row. So on her last jump the coach moved her to a pole that was even harder to bend … and she crushed that one as well.
    So she “no heighten” but only because she turned into Superman. Or the hulk. So like Bruce Banner … if she can learn how to control that power, great things can occur.

  196. Finally watched “The Disaster Artist”. Interesting.

    You might be surprised at how many “vanity” films like the one featured in this film are made every year. Usually with a MUCH lower budget but to the same end. I have a pal who works on a LOT of these as a DP. As he puts it, “good or bad … they’re all paying my day rate”.
    The bad ones do have the added benefit of providing him with great stories to tell at get togethers.

  200. Morning Pan
    We started watching Nightfliers on Netflix this weekend. We’re only three episodes in but are quite enjoying it so far.

  205. Spent the Superbowl go through my email and cleaning out my inbox. Can’t tell you about the game but I DID get rid of more than 200 old emails! There should be a merit badge for that.

    2 commercials stuck out. Some commercial for the next season of “Game of Thrones” that wins the prize for mis-direction …
    … and an ad that had Harrison Ford … just because Han Solo IS NOT DEAD I TELL YOU!!!!!

    • Only 200? I got rid of about 25,000 yesterday. Of course those were mostly promo emails from companies and easily filtered. 😉

      We also liked the NFL 100 ad. 😀

      • “We also liked the NFL 100 ad. ”

        Oh yeh. That add was fun. I had forgotten about it.
        There was also one where a guy has a near death experience and when he looks around his cubicle after being saved, he seems full of regret for having been saved.
        I liked that one

    • I have the same takeaway. He’s reflecting on a dark time in his life and having an honest discussion of rage and racism. People shouldn’t be shocked that those feelings aren’t bound by the confines of political correctness.

    • How about just shutting the fuck up?

      I’m going to guess a lot of people have thoughts that could be charitably described as bad at times

      If you have revenge fantasies, dreaming of sex with a stranger, etc than just keep them to yourself.

      • I disagree in this case, because he’s raising it himself, horrified with himself from 4 decades ago. No dimwit white supremacist can point to his comments as justification for their bullshit.

        Contrast that with the Virginia politician, who’s suddenly appalled by (people finding out about) his juvenile racist behaviors of the past.*

        Where I do agree with you 100%: if these were his current feelings, then the public forum isn’t the place to process them. Work that shit out in private or in counseling.

        • *Or anyone else who was trying to cover up their rotten antics, but is suddenly either in denial of them, or is suddenly full of regret. See: Kavanaugh, Spacey, Louis CK, etc.

  219. Modern life is awfully darn convenient … until it stops being so.

    Message to me from the manufacturer –
    “I am sorry to tell you that due to the item isn’t bought from our website, we do not have your order information and could not help you solve the issue, you can contact with Amazon customer service to solve it.”

    From Amazon –
    “Please contact the seller directly for warranty information for this product. You may also be able to find warranty information on the manufacturer’s website.”

  222. Hubby said some of the teachers at school are giving him a hard time. They asked what he was getting me for Valentine’s Day, and he said nothing, we don’t celebrate. Then they gave him heck for it. He then asked me if I wanted flowers. I told him, as an educator, he should tell them to stop bullying him and trying to make him give into peer pressure 😉

  229. Happy 45th Blazing Saddles! A real clinic in comedy and storytelling. Unfortunately it’s message of how ludicrousness racism is is still beyond relevant today.

    45 years… surprising how not much has changed.

    • Yeah I don’t count the UK as outside the US anymore. We are just two peas in a gross pod. Sorry Van…

      Anyway I KNOW there’s a perfect Blackadder quote for this…

      • Captain Blackadder:
        I spy with my bored little eye something beginning with “T”.

        Private Baldrick:
        Breakfast.

        Captain Blackadder:
        What?

        Private Baldrick:
        My breakfast always begins with tea. Then I have a little sausage, then a egg with some little soldiers.

        Captain Blackadder:
        Baldrick, when I said it begins with “T”, I was talking about a letter.

        Private Baldrick:
        Nah – it never begins with a letter. The postman don’t come till 10.30.

        Captain Blackadder:
        I can’t go on with this. George, take over.

        Lieutenant George:
        All right, sir. Umm… I spy with my little eye something beginning with “R”

        Private Baldrick:
        Army.

        Captain Blackadder:
        For God’s sake, Baldrick. Army starts with an “A”. He’s looking for something that starts with an “R”. Rrrrrrr.

        Private Baldrick:
        Motorbike

        Captain Blackadder:
        What?

        Private Baldrick:
        Well, a motorbike starts with an rrrrm rrrrm rrrrm.

        Captain Blackadder:
        Right, right, right. My turn again. What begins with “Come here” and ends in “Ow”?

        Private Baldrick:
        I don’t know.

        Captain Blackadder:
        Come here.

        Private Baldrick:
        [Blackadder punches Baldrick in the face] Ow!

  233. Allita: Battle Angel was ok.

    I can’t Argue with the reviews stating that they were so busy setting up future sequels that the plot suffered.

    Some good action sequences though…

  234. Hubby’s not home.
    Am I reading? Nope.
    Am I watching TV? Nope.
    Am I gaming? Nope

    I decided to put in some extra work time. What’s wrong with me?

  236. Blood Red shoes have just released thier finest album, thier sixth, to date. Get Tragic is lyrically brutally honest, and musically genius. A real musical departure and maturity for them. And it’s a tight 36 minutes. Do it!

  240. BANGBANGBANG is a song by K-Pop boy band BigBANG. Here’s the lyrics if you were curious.

    Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh
    난 깨어나 까만 밤과 함께 hey
    다 들어와 담엔 누구 차례 hey
    한 치 앞도 볼 수 없는 막장 게릴라
    경배하라 목청이 터지게 yea
    찌질한 분위기를 전환해
    광기를 감추지 못하게 해
    남자들의 품위 여자들의 가식
    이유 모를 자신감이 볼만해
    난 보란 듯이 너무나도 뻔뻔히
    니 몸속에 파고드는 알러지
    이상한 정신의 술렁이는 천지
    오늘 여기 무법지
    난 불을 질러 심장을 태워
    널 미치게 하고 싶어
    B.I.G. yea we bang like this
    모두 다 같이
    총 맞은 것처럼
    Bang, bang, bang
    Bang, bang, bang
    빵야 빵야 빵야
    Bang bang bang
    Bang bang bang
    빵야 빵야 빵야
    다 꼼짝 마라 다 꼼짝 마
    다 꼼짝 마라 다 꼼짝 마
    오늘 밤 끝장 보자 다 끝장 봐
    오늘 밤 끝장 보자
    빵야 빵야 빵야
    널 데려가 지금 이 순간에
    새빨간 저 하늘이 춤출 때
    돌고 돌아 너와 나 이곳은 Valhalla
    찬양하라 더 울려 퍼지게 yea
    We go hard 불침번 밤새 달려 축지법
    이 노래는 꼭지점 신이나 불러라 신점
    큰 비명소리는 마성의 멜로디
    검은 독기의 연결 고리
    사방 팔방 오방 가서 푸는 고삐 Whoo
    난 불을 질러
    네 심장을 태워
    널 미치게 하고 싶어
    B.I.G. yeah we bang like this
    모두 다 같이
    총 맞은 것처럼
    Bang bang bang
    Bang bang bang
    빵야 빵야 빵야
    Bang bang bang
    Bang bang bang
    빵야 빵야 빵야
    다 꼼짝 마라 다 꼼짝 마
    다 꼼짝 마라 다 꼼짝 마
    오늘 밤 끝장 보자 다 끝장 봐
    오늘 밤 끝장 보자
    빵야 빵야 빵야 (빵야 빵야 빵야, 빵야 빵야 빵야)
    Ready or not
    Yea we don’t give a what
    Ready or not
    Yea we don’t give a what
    Let’s go 남자들은 위로
    여자들은 get low
    당겨라 bang bang bang
    Let the bass drum go
    남자들은 위로
    여자들은 get low
    당겨라 bang bang bang
    Let the bass drum go
    Let the bass drum go
    Let the bass drum go
    Bang bang bang
    Bang bang bang
    Let the bass drum go
    Bang bang bang
    Bang bang bang
    Let the bass drum go

        • It occurs to me that the above section of lyrics are oddly non-contextural and as such, fail as a series of directions.

          “take a bottle” Okay, so a take a bottle. What bottle am I to take? I would advise that if you take a bottle to take one that is being offered or otherwise one that you own yourself. Don’t take one from the convience store unless you plan on paying for it. The lyric doesn’t say what you are to take a bottle of, but given that the song name is “Pour Some Sugar on Me” and there are bubbles involved, it is likely a bottle of soda pop. Beer typically isn’t sweeten and diet soda pop doesn’t contain sugar so any sugared soda pop should work.

          “shake it up” I infer that the “it” in question is the bottle of soda pop.

          “Break the bubble” There seems to be a missing step or this is a misprint. Break the “bottle” would have made more sense, but I believe that “open the bottle” is the missing step. “Pour the contents of the bottle in a manner that bubbles are in easy reach” could be implied. The song rightly instructed to “shake it up” ensuring that bubbles would present themselves. However, there would be multiple bubbles and break “the” bubble seems oddly specific. We should either be directed to the correct bubble to break or simply to break “a” bubble.

          “break it up” is redundant and could be left out as a step.

          New improved lyric:

          Take a bottle of sugared soda pop that you own.
          Shake the bottle vigorously for 10 seconds.
          Open the bottle and pour its contents in front of you so that bubbles are within your reach.
          Break a bubble, it doesn’t matter which one.

          I do not claim to know the purpose of performing the action above, but at least now you can do it accurately.

  241. Decided to cancel my city appointments. It’s cold and snowy and traffic says to allow double the normal time to get to where I’m going

  250. So, keeping this off of the main social media radars, but we’re doing an overnight at Phoenix Children’s for the littlest one. Hopefully that’s it. I wanna say it’s all precaution. More details later.

    I’m not much for metaphysics, but prayers, good vibes, well-wishes – – well take what ya got.

  254. The good news – – no concerns today, good results, being discharged. Heading home after the admissions crew does their thing. So hopefully before college.

  259. Advice time. I have not been (and do not plan to continue) updating my beer blog (bottlecollection.net), but I don’t want to let it dissapear into the ether. GoDaddy wants to charge me an arm and a leg just for renewal of the most basic plan. Anyone know of a better/cheaper hosting site that will let me simply keep the domain name and the existing content?

    • I don’t (care to) know the business configs behind the scenes of all these media giants, but imagine there’s gotta be a conflict in there.

      Still, it would be a happy turn of events.

  275. Now it’s time to get my monthly pushed, pulled, and stretched without an inch of my life. Hurts like hell when it’s happening but feels so wonderful the next day

  285. Happy Heart Day, Pan.

    You all get a piece of mine.

    Also, Happy 1st Birthday to the littlest Mangan. Truth be told, she’s gotta BIG piece of my heart.

    squeeeeee

  297. The Orville is my new go to show and the one I currently look forward to the most every week. I love it.

    And Van may disagree bit as much as I miss ___ I think I love ___ even more. She’s exquisite

  301. Might as well take a crack at a crap joke for the day.

    A man talks to his family doctor and says “my son has scarlet fever”.

    Doctor: I know, I treated him yesterday.
    Man: But, I also found out he kissed the maid.
    Doctor: Then we’ll have to quarantine her as well.
    Man: But, I also kissed the maid.
    Doctor: Well, this is getting complicated, you might have contracted the disease as well.
    Man: But, I also kissed my wife.
    Doctor: Dammit man, now I’ve got it.

  304. One and a half episodes in to The Umbrella Academy (new Netflix series) and i’m Rather enjoying it.

    There was an initial disappointment it was not set in Racoon City..

  310. Just got back from seeing Alita: Battle Angel. We both liked it. Although, it didn’t really end so we fully expect a sequel, assuming it does well.

  311. We also saw Battle Nigel today (not fixing that).

    It’s often like a Van Damme movie, but there’s a lot to like. Fantastic setting. I’m interested in the sequel, if it ever happens.

    I do wish we could get movies in this day and age that are interested in being good standalone films, and not just intro hooks for some greater franchise.

  312. Alita: Battle ANGEL – I dug it. I am easily impressed by alot of movies. I was prepared to be disappointed in this one before I saw it, based on grumbles I heard; but alas! It was fun and I fell for the teenagers in love. I also enjoyed the all-star cast.

    It also piqued my interest in reading the manga book.