I treasure my visitors that visit the Inn through Google, having being led through a particular combination of terms in the search engine.
One person today searched for:
"Restaurant in Knoxville beside Riverside Tavern"
That would be either Carabba's, or Outback Steakhouse.
I hope that this helps. Thank you for your time and attention.
Monday, January 17, 2005
Friday, January 14, 2005
Click Away!
Did you visit here via Blogclicker or BlogExplosion?
Leave me a quick comment and say hello. I seem to be getting a good number of referrals, but not a lot of comments... I try to leave comments on blogs I visit, so hopefully this will pick it up a bit.
Even more, leave me a question or two in the comments, and I'll answer when I'm back online. Ask me anything - I'll try my best to answer.
So, welcome!
 |
 |
Leave me a quick comment and say hello. I seem to be getting a good number of referrals, but not a lot of comments... I try to leave comments on blogs I visit, so hopefully this will pick it up a bit.
Even more, leave me a question or two in the comments, and I'll answer when I'm back online. Ask me anything - I'll try my best to answer.
So, welcome!
Author Stephen White
My literary tastes don't run very high, really. I mean, compared to the body of classics that exists out in the world.
For that, go read Sheila.
I've always enjoyed Agatha Christie, and her Belgian detective Hercule Poirot, and if there are any of his stories still left that I haven't read, I'd love to find them. Her mysteries are spotless examples of plotting and characterization, misdirection and elegant suspense.
But I've recently become enamored with a different kind of mystery genre - psychological thrillers. In particular, I've come to devour anything by Robert Block and Stephen White that I can find.
Lawrence Block, author of the Bernie Rhodenbarr "Burglar" series I'll talk about another time, but Stephen White has created a character that is fascinating. Boulder, CO psycologist Alan Gregory.
As you can see to the right (at least for the time being) I'm reading "Warning Signs," which White wrote a couple of years ago. I came into the Alan Gregory series in the middle, checking out an audiobook copy of "Cold Case" from the library a year or so ago. Since with a single-author series, things happen to characters over the span of time that make it difficult to jump around from book to book. Events are referred to that I haven't read about, and recurring characters live and die from story to story, so I always like to read a series from the beginning. After I finished "Cold Case", I went back to his first book, "Privileged Information" and started from there.
Anyway, I can't say enough about White and his Alan Gregory series. Having read some Koontz, Robin Cook and even Michael Crichton lately, they can't hold a candle to White in terms of literary style, plotting, characterization... Gregory becomes involved in cases through his patients, in addition to his Assistant D.A. wife (well, girlfriend in the first couple of books). The books are in first person, inside Gregory's head, and we see him struggle with professional ethics and solving crimes from an outsider's perspective.
If you have a chance to pick up one of the books, I'd highly recommend them.
Thursday, January 13, 2005
Young at Heart
|
You Are 26 Years Old |
|
Under 12: You are a kid at heart. You still have an optimistic life view - and you look at the world with awe. 13-19: You are a teenager at heart. You question authority and are still trying to find your place in this world. 20-29: You are a twentysomething at heart. You feel excited about what's to come... love, work, and new experiences. 30-39: You are a thirtysomething at heart. You've had a taste of success and true love, but you want more! 40+: You are a mature adult. You've been through most of the ups and downs of life already. Now you get to sit back and relax. |
Friday's Feast
Feast Thirty-One
Appetizer - If you could have a free subscription to any online service, which would you like to have?
Probably one of the more extensive Fantasy sports sites, the one that will tell me things I can use, instead of recommending me not to play Willis McGahee of the Bills the week he was coming back from an injury, when he subsequently tuned up the opposition for about 150 years and 2 TD's
Soup - Describe your bathroom (furnishings, colors, etc.).
We have three in our home, mine and my wife's, the kids, and the downstairs which is really the nighttime home for Ramona the dog. Do they have particular colors? I'm a guy. How should I know?
Salad - What does the shape of a triangle make you think of?
The first thing I should say is a trinity, but in reality it makes me think of a metal orchestral Triangle.
Main Course - Name 3 things or activities that you consider to be luxuries.
1. Cruising (on a cruise ship, not like up and down some college street in a car)
2. Getting a massage (paid)
3. Traveling to Europe or Africa for a vacation
Dessert - What was the last really great movie you watched?
Probably "The Incredibles". My wife would say "The Polar Express" but I wasn't as enamored of it as she was. My kids would probably say, "Spongebob"
Wednesday, January 12, 2005
Fun at Traffic Court
I didn't see John Laroquette, and there was no sign of Markie Post anywhere. There were several Bull-like gentlemen in uniform, however.
I went to Knox County Traffic Court today to clear up my expired registration situation from last month.
God help our judicial system.
First I was told the courtoom I needed to go to was in the City/County Building, a behemoth downtown with all kinds of security. I emptied my pocketses for the metal detector, passed through fine and then was told the courtroom I needed to be in was in the Old Courthouse next door.
Feh.
I go next door, holding the elevator for a lady ladened to the teeth with crates, boxes, papers and a bag of cheetos. Up to the third floor to Fourth Sessions Court. The area outside the courtroom was full of people waiting for the court to open at 9am. Finally the lights turn on, the door opens and we all file in.
The courtroom is smaller than I'd anticipated, and filled with what look like old church pews. In comes Cheeto lady, who turns out to be the prosecutor for Traffic Court...hm. Good thing I was nice to her in the hall... She tells everyone to have a seat and wait for their name to be called, and..oh, all those awaiting arraignment should wait outside until 10am. Behind her sits the judge for the session, and a myriad of other clerks, barristers and guards wander in and out.
Not me. I sit and cool my heels for a while. She works through the docket, calling name after name alphabetically. One unlucky fellow in the seats is yelled at by the judge after his cell phone goes off. I hurriedly mute mine before it's confiscated.
Most people who are called have their offenses taken care of, but some do go before the judge for..um, well, judgement. Another unlucky guy was chastised greatly by the judge for going 112 in a 70 mph zone - he was cited for reckless driving as well as speeding, had his license suspended and was put on 6-month probation. A young woman gave a sob story about not complying with a 90-day mandated appointment with driving school, because "they hadn't returned her phone calls" when trying to schedule the class. The judge would have none of it, and off she went. Still another unlucky lady with two little kids was barked at by the judge because the older child's toy was making too much noise. Geez, back off yeronner...
Finally, CheetoProsecutor - who seemed to be very nice, but harried - breezed through to the end of the alphabet, but skipped my name. "Oh crap" I said nicely, to myself, and got up to inquire. After waiting in line a few seconds, I spoke to the nice lady and was told she was just about to ask for people's names who weren't called. I showed her the citation, and she seemed concerned that my wife - whose name was actually on the citation, although she was driving my car - was not here personally to contest or allow the ticket. I explained that she had been told by the officer that all I would have to do was show proof the registration had been updated and paid (which it now had been), and that would be the end of that. She handed the citation over to a clerk and asked me to take a seat, while they searched for the records.
So I sat.
Finally I was called back up, and stood before the judge.
I considered throwing myself bodily down on the floor, screaming and begging for the mercy of the court. I considered pointing a finger at the nearest lawyer, crying "I OBJECT! ARGUMENTATIVE! MOVE TO STRIKE!" I however, did none of those things but instead smiled politely as the judge told me that since I had paid the registration, it was dismissed but I'd still need to pay Court Costs. And to step outside till my name was called.
Court Costs?
The mysterious catch-all of fines...I think each evening someone in County Finance office looks at the days receipts, compares them to what's remaining in the year's budget and comes to an estimate of how much the courts need to make the next day. That number is divided by the number of cases, and the result is what each person has to pay in "Court Costs".
This figure, of course, includes the continuing amount of money we waste each year defending Shurf Hutchinson against all his various lawsuits, but that's another story.
Anyhoo, I step outside with the rest of the mass of humanity. Presently, a nice young man who was probably 2 when I graduated from high school directs all us unlucky Court Cost payers to follow him. We exit the third floor, exit the building, and walk over to...
You guessed it. The City/County Building, where I'd started out in the first place.
I go through security again - this time, however, the metal detector has had time to think about me since the first time I went through, and my belt buckle is deemed an Imminent Security Breach. I'm "wanded". Oh, my dignity.
I head down to the clerk's desk and pay the Court Costs. I swell with pride at fulfilling my civic duty to pay (apparently) half the total annual budget of the government of Guam, and finally leave the building.
I check my watch - it's only been just over an hour. Seems like I'd been in Traffic Court for the better part of the winter.
I had considered taking the rest of the day off from work, but since starving people in the Pacific Rim have to eat, I decide to go back to work. I vow never to have another lapsed registration, moving violation, parking ticket, noise citation or
How this story should've ended, for maximum ironic and comedic effect
The drive back to work from downtown usually takes about 20 minutes down Alcoa Highway, but today it took 25. Why?
I got a speeding ticket.
Crap.
But that's not what happened. I guess thank goodness for me, too bad for the literary world.
I went to Knox County Traffic Court today to clear up my expired registration situation from last month.
God help our judicial system.
First I was told the courtoom I needed to go to was in the City/County Building, a behemoth downtown with all kinds of security. I emptied my pocketses for the metal detector, passed through fine and then was told the courtroom I needed to be in was in the Old Courthouse next door.
Feh.
I go next door, holding the elevator for a lady ladened to the teeth with crates, boxes, papers and a bag of cheetos. Up to the third floor to Fourth Sessions Court. The area outside the courtroom was full of people waiting for the court to open at 9am. Finally the lights turn on, the door opens and we all file in.
The courtroom is smaller than I'd anticipated, and filled with what look like old church pews. In comes Cheeto lady, who turns out to be the prosecutor for Traffic Court...hm. Good thing I was nice to her in the hall... She tells everyone to have a seat and wait for their name to be called, and..oh, all those awaiting arraignment should wait outside until 10am. Behind her sits the judge for the session, and a myriad of other clerks, barristers and guards wander in and out.
Not me. I sit and cool my heels for a while. She works through the docket, calling name after name alphabetically. One unlucky fellow in the seats is yelled at by the judge after his cell phone goes off. I hurriedly mute mine before it's confiscated.
Most people who are called have their offenses taken care of, but some do go before the judge for..um, well, judgement. Another unlucky guy was chastised greatly by the judge for going 112 in a 70 mph zone - he was cited for reckless driving as well as speeding, had his license suspended and was put on 6-month probation. A young woman gave a sob story about not complying with a 90-day mandated appointment with driving school, because "they hadn't returned her phone calls" when trying to schedule the class. The judge would have none of it, and off she went. Still another unlucky lady with two little kids was barked at by the judge because the older child's toy was making too much noise. Geez, back off yeronner...
Finally, CheetoProsecutor - who seemed to be very nice, but harried - breezed through to the end of the alphabet, but skipped my name. "Oh crap" I said nicely, to myself, and got up to inquire. After waiting in line a few seconds, I spoke to the nice lady and was told she was just about to ask for people's names who weren't called. I showed her the citation, and she seemed concerned that my wife - whose name was actually on the citation, although she was driving my car - was not here personally to contest or allow the ticket. I explained that she had been told by the officer that all I would have to do was show proof the registration had been updated and paid (which it now had been), and that would be the end of that. She handed the citation over to a clerk and asked me to take a seat, while they searched for the records.
So I sat.
Finally I was called back up, and stood before the judge.
I considered throwing myself bodily down on the floor, screaming and begging for the mercy of the court. I considered pointing a finger at the nearest lawyer, crying "I OBJECT! ARGUMENTATIVE! MOVE TO STRIKE!" I however, did none of those things but instead smiled politely as the judge told me that since I had paid the registration, it was dismissed but I'd still need to pay Court Costs. And to step outside till my name was called.
Court Costs?
The mysterious catch-all of fines...I think each evening someone in County Finance office looks at the days receipts, compares them to what's remaining in the year's budget and comes to an estimate of how much the courts need to make the next day. That number is divided by the number of cases, and the result is what each person has to pay in "Court Costs".
This figure, of course, includes the continuing amount of money we waste each year defending Shurf Hutchinson against all his various lawsuits, but that's another story.
Anyhoo, I step outside with the rest of the mass of humanity. Presently, a nice young man who was probably 2 when I graduated from high school directs all us unlucky Court Cost payers to follow him. We exit the third floor, exit the building, and walk over to...
You guessed it. The City/County Building, where I'd started out in the first place.
I go through security again - this time, however, the metal detector has had time to think about me since the first time I went through, and my belt buckle is deemed an Imminent Security Breach. I'm "wanded". Oh, my dignity.
I head down to the clerk's desk and pay the Court Costs. I swell with pride at fulfilling my civic duty to pay (apparently) half the total annual budget of the government of Guam, and finally leave the building.
I check my watch - it's only been just over an hour. Seems like I'd been in Traffic Court for the better part of the winter.
I had considered taking the rest of the day off from work, but since starving people in the Pacific Rim have to eat, I decide to go back to work. I vow never to have another lapsed registration, moving violation, parking ticket, noise citation or
How this story should've ended, for maximum ironic and comedic effect
The drive back to work from downtown usually takes about 20 minutes down Alcoa Highway, but today it took 25. Why?
I got a speeding ticket.
Crap.
But that's not what happened. I guess thank goodness for me, too bad for the literary world.
Tuesday, January 11, 2005
TV Tuesday
Week 39: The King
Last Saturday would have been the 70th birthday of the King of Rock and Roll, Elvis Presley. Fans from across the world gathered in Memphis at Graceland to celebrate the birth of the King of Rock and Roll. But Elvis was more than just the king of the musical world. He made tried to be the king of all media with appearances on TV, his movies, etc. This week, we take a look at the King of Rock and Roll.
1. Did you watch any of the Elvis movie marathons, celebrations or retrospectives on various channels over the weekend?
Who's Elvis?
2. Do you have a favorite Elvis movie? If so, which one?
Can't say I've ever seen an Elvis movie.
3. Elvis's appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show caused quite a bit of controversy and had the censors worried about his dancing. Looking back, it's nothing compared to what the censors allow on TV today. What is the most outrageous thing you've seen on TV recently?
That shows like "Finding my Deadbeat Dad" (or whatever it was called) and "The Will" still even ever get greenlit, much less produced, aired and (apparently) watched.
~ BONUS ~ Elvis's appearance on the Ed Sullivan show was a huge deal. If you were old enough to have actually seen Elvis when he appeared on the show, did you watch? What'd you think at the time? Share any memories you might have related to the event. What is your favorite Elvis TV moment or special?
Sorry - wasn't around.
Last Saturday would have been the 70th birthday of the King of Rock and Roll, Elvis Presley. Fans from across the world gathered in Memphis at Graceland to celebrate the birth of the King of Rock and Roll. But Elvis was more than just the king of the musical world. He made tried to be the king of all media with appearances on TV, his movies, etc. This week, we take a look at the King of Rock and Roll.
1. Did you watch any of the Elvis movie marathons, celebrations or retrospectives on various channels over the weekend?
Who's Elvis?
2. Do you have a favorite Elvis movie? If so, which one?
Can't say I've ever seen an Elvis movie.
3. Elvis's appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show caused quite a bit of controversy and had the censors worried about his dancing. Looking back, it's nothing compared to what the censors allow on TV today. What is the most outrageous thing you've seen on TV recently?
That shows like "Finding my Deadbeat Dad" (or whatever it was called) and "The Will" still even ever get greenlit, much less produced, aired and (apparently) watched.
~ BONUS ~ Elvis's appearance on the Ed Sullivan show was a huge deal. If you were old enough to have actually seen Elvis when he appeared on the show, did you watch? What'd you think at the time? Share any memories you might have related to the event. What is your favorite Elvis TV moment or special?
Sorry - wasn't around.
Monday, January 10, 2005
Back Atcha
Today is Teresa's (Hatamaran's) Birthday. She gave me birthday kudos last week, so I'm returning the favor.
Happy Birthday, Teep!
Happy Birthday, Teep!
Sunday, January 09, 2005
Second Bloggiversary 2004 Year-In-Review
Two years ago, I started my blog and the Inn of the Last Home was born. One year ago I published a list of what I felt were my more noteworthy posts of 2003.
So in the spirit of all that's newsworthy and pithy, I'm opening up the log books of the Inn of the Last Home for 2004. Enjoy.
January:
Encourage, Not Discourage - Should schools post honor rolls? Should they even give out grades?
February:
Who Am I? - On blog anonymity and credibility. Or lack thereof.
What to Write, What to Write... - This one I was particularly proud of, and got linked to more than anything else I've done, I believe. In this entry I publicly thrash out my internal political turmoil.
March:
Free Will - Whose side is God on, anyway? Let's talk about it...
What A Pal - You know, I wrote this post about Neil Simon being donated a kidney - and now I have no idea what the joke I put at the end means...
For The Living - I attend the funeral of a friend's brother, and my discussion on what funerals are really about.
Conversations I - 1st of this years discussions with GiggleGirl/Tink
Word - A rare and puzzling exchange with BrainyBoy (v8). Yo.
My Reply - Oh, Bubba, Bubba, Bubba. This may be a little confusing out of context, but hey...what blog entry isn't? But then, SKB's a little confusing in context anyway...
April:
Pollenteer Talegait Harty - Glurp the Gully Dwarf whomps me over the head with a dead rat on April Fool's Day and hijacks the Volunteer Tailgate Party. Hilarity ensues.
All Keyed Up - I'm a witness to a crime.
Please, Make It Stop! - "KISS YOUR SUBSCRIPTION GOODBYE!" I'm told, in no uncertain terms. Not.
Conversations: Saved by the Bell - More baby talk with GiggleGirl/Tink
May:
Hmm. May was a bit barren. Must've had my mind on other things. Well, there's a couple of Willy Wonka posts if you must read something...
June:
Time Passes - My thoughts on the death of an old classmate.
AdventureCon - A family's adventures in the wild, untamed world of sci-fi and comics conventions...
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban: My Thoughts - Er, just what it says.
A Tragedy of Errors? - Six Unforgivable Mistakes on 9/11 caused by lack of communication.
July:
Nothing. Zilch. Zero.Noodle Nada. Our trip to Hilton Head sucked the creative juices out of me. Keep moving...
August:
SPOON: The Continuing Crisis - Day 4 - Be afraid of mysterious utensils. Be very afraid of mysterious utensils.
GoldenBoySchlagerGateUpdate - My favorite post title of all time. Something about a local political goof-off throwing his weight around. It was more interesting at the time, but I still just love the title.
GiggleGirl and friend at Hilton Head - Just a picture. But I love this one.
My 20th High School Reunion:
What's Old is New Again (Part 1 - Prep)
What's Old is New Again (Part 2 - Friday)
What's Old is New Again (Part 3 - Saturday)
September:
My New Obsession - I drool over The West Wing.
Rudeness - "PROFANITY! This is utter PROFANITY PROFANITY. This is the worst kind of PROFANITY mess I've ever seen!" No, I didn't say it. But I have something to say about it...
From the Dark To The Light - I may have been a little harsh on this one, but I can't stand cowards.
One Shining Moment - On the cusp of heaven with GiggleGirl/Tink.
Pet Peeve of the Day - B my name is Barry, dammit. B-a-r-r-y. Got it??? GOT IT???
Conversations III - Who's the parent here? I forget...
October:
Curing the Lame - An unpopular opinion on a popular subject, apparently. Of course Christopher Reeve might've been able to walk again someday - why not??
Blogger Laws - This one got some linkagery, too. Please, if you read this post - add some more!
November:
*yawn*
December:
Tomorrow is Just 24 Hours Away... - This started as just a post about the 1st Season set of the show "24" but it evolved into something way, way deeper.
The Working Life: Part 1 and Part 2 - So, what do you do at work anyway?
That's 2004 for you. Sometimes I was deep, sometimes I was just silly. I had fun, hope you did too. Have a great 2005!
UPDATE: In other bloggiversary news, Logtar is one and Ms Zoot is one, also.
So in the spirit of all that's newsworthy and pithy, I'm opening up the log books of the Inn of the Last Home for 2004. Enjoy.
January:
Encourage, Not Discourage - Should schools post honor rolls? Should they even give out grades?
February:
Who Am I? - On blog anonymity and credibility. Or lack thereof.
What to Write, What to Write... - This one I was particularly proud of, and got linked to more than anything else I've done, I believe. In this entry I publicly thrash out my internal political turmoil.
March:
Free Will - Whose side is God on, anyway? Let's talk about it...
What A Pal - You know, I wrote this post about Neil Simon being donated a kidney - and now I have no idea what the joke I put at the end means...
For The Living - I attend the funeral of a friend's brother, and my discussion on what funerals are really about.
Conversations I - 1st of this years discussions with GiggleGirl/Tink
Word - A rare and puzzling exchange with BrainyBoy (v8). Yo.
My Reply - Oh, Bubba, Bubba, Bubba. This may be a little confusing out of context, but hey...what blog entry isn't? But then, SKB's a little confusing in context anyway...
April:
Pollenteer Talegait Harty - Glurp the Gully Dwarf whomps me over the head with a dead rat on April Fool's Day and hijacks the Volunteer Tailgate Party. Hilarity ensues.
All Keyed Up - I'm a witness to a crime.
Please, Make It Stop! - "KISS YOUR SUBSCRIPTION GOODBYE!" I'm told, in no uncertain terms. Not.
Conversations: Saved by the Bell - More baby talk with GiggleGirl/Tink
May:
Hmm. May was a bit barren. Must've had my mind on other things. Well, there's a couple of Willy Wonka posts if you must read something...
June:
Time Passes - My thoughts on the death of an old classmate.
AdventureCon - A family's adventures in the wild, untamed world of sci-fi and comics conventions...
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban: My Thoughts - Er, just what it says.
A Tragedy of Errors? - Six Unforgivable Mistakes on 9/11 caused by lack of communication.
July:
Nothing. Zilch. Zero.
August:
SPOON: The Continuing Crisis - Day 4 - Be afraid of mysterious utensils. Be very afraid of mysterious utensils.
GoldenBoySchlagerGateUpdate - My favorite post title of all time. Something about a local political goof-off throwing his weight around. It was more interesting at the time, but I still just love the title.
GiggleGirl and friend at Hilton Head - Just a picture. But I love this one.
My 20th High School Reunion:
What's Old is New Again (Part 1 - Prep)
What's Old is New Again (Part 2 - Friday)
What's Old is New Again (Part 3 - Saturday)
September:
My New Obsession - I drool over The West Wing.
Rudeness - "PROFANITY! This is utter PROFANITY PROFANITY. This is the worst kind of PROFANITY mess I've ever seen!" No, I didn't say it. But I have something to say about it...
From the Dark To The Light - I may have been a little harsh on this one, but I can't stand cowards.
One Shining Moment - On the cusp of heaven with GiggleGirl/Tink.
Pet Peeve of the Day - B my name is Barry, dammit. B-a-r-r-y. Got it??? GOT IT???
Conversations III - Who's the parent here? I forget...
October:
Curing the Lame - An unpopular opinion on a popular subject, apparently. Of course Christopher Reeve might've been able to walk again someday - why not??
Blogger Laws - This one got some linkagery, too. Please, if you read this post - add some more!
November:
*yawn*
December:
Tomorrow is Just 24 Hours Away... - This started as just a post about the 1st Season set of the show "24" but it evolved into something way, way deeper.
The Working Life: Part 1 and Part 2 - So, what do you do at work anyway?
That's 2004 for you. Sometimes I was deep, sometimes I was just silly. I had fun, hope you did too. Have a great 2005!
UPDATE: In other bloggiversary news, Logtar is one and Ms Zoot is one, also.
Friday, January 07, 2005
Would You Please Just Go Away!!!
Atheist Sues to Thwart Inauguration Prayer
"An atheist who sued because he did not want his young daughter exposed to the words "under God" in the Pledge of Allegiance has filed a suit to bar the saying of a prayer at President Bush's inauguration."
Sources
One of the reasons I don't do a lot of punditry posting (other than the fact I really don't know anything about anything) is that I believe assertions you make about particular subjects should be supported by tangible proof and supportable evidence.
Go anywhere you like on the web, blogs or not, and you'll see wildly unsubstantiated "facts" and stories about everything under the sun. What's worse, once everyone starts repeating the stories they become pseudo-facts - "facts" that become self-proven, simply because all your friends have said them over and over, so they must be true.
Don Williams is a columnist with the
Knoxville News Sentinel. In the past few years, he's concentrated almost solely on repudiating the Bush Adminisration's policies and actions. And that's fine...ever administration should have its feet held to the fire. Bush included, especially now that he's a lame duck president.
But his latest column, Words to the wise for Democrats, highlights some of the continuing flaws in our information and opinion-sharing process - the lack of real supporting evidence to back up your opinions, and the reliance on "conventional wisdom" or "common knowledge" as a substitute.
Maybe such polls exist, maybe they don't. Maybe Don was told they did, and he reported the fact - he may have been told by someone whose integrity he trusted. Maybe that person read a story in a publication he trusted. But unless the actual poll is presented along with the opinion, how far can the trust go? Especially when any link in the chain may have more than the most pure of journalistic intentions at heart. Continuing:
Again, maybe just such a poll exists - if it does, it would greatly boost his credibility among those who might not agree with him.
But mostly it sounds like what's typically bandied about in ultra-liberal blogs and websites - opinions that, when tossed around so much, take on a factual basis of their own, based on their listeners' desire to believe them.
Here's more with a local spin:
And it's not just on the liberal side. It's a universal problem that's perpetrated by columnists and pundits and bloggers and radio talk show hosts of every political stripe - the more you say that something is a fact, the more people believe it's a fact, and the more it becomes Conventional Wisdom. When you have millions of listeners or readers, it becomes a handy tool. It's worked well for Rush Limbaugh for 15 years or more.
Finally, I realize it's difficult to get past these things. I believe, yes, that Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin landed and walked on the moon in 1969 - it's been part of my upbringing for 35 years. I've seen the videos, heard the stories, read the textbooks. But how do I really know? Have I seen and analyzed the telemetry data myself? Have I interviewed the men of Apollo 13 myself? No, of course not. But I still believe it - because after 35 years (current conspiracy theorists notwithstanding) I accept it as a wonderful part of human history and would be foolish to disbelieve it.
But 35 years from now, unless we're happy that some of the current Conventional Wisdom arguments will still be around and regarded as "fact", we need to be prepared to demand proof and support for our media's assertions. And not rest until it's provided, willingly.
Because there's your doublespeak. Accepted willingly.
Go anywhere you like on the web, blogs or not, and you'll see wildly unsubstantiated "facts" and stories about everything under the sun. What's worse, once everyone starts repeating the stories they become pseudo-facts - "facts" that become self-proven, simply because all your friends have said them over and over, so they must be true.
Don Williams is a columnist with the
Knoxville News Sentinel. In the past few years, he's concentrated almost solely on repudiating the Bush Adminisration's policies and actions. And that's fine...ever administration should have its feet held to the fire. Bush included, especially now that he's a lame duck president.
But his latest column, Words to the wise for Democrats, highlights some of the continuing flaws in our information and opinion-sharing process - the lack of real supporting evidence to back up your opinions, and the reliance on "conventional wisdom" or "common knowledge" as a substitute.
'Polls show that a majority of those who voted for George W. Bush in 2004 really believed Saddam Hussein had something to do with the horrors of 9/11 and that Iraq had strong ties to al-Qaida. A similar percentage said the United States found stockpiles of chemical or nuclear weapons in Iraq. You and I know these things are not true, but lots of Fox News viewers in particular believed they happened.What polls, Don? Can you tell me? Can anyone tell me? How difficult would it have been to say something like, "A December 2004 Pew Opinion Poll showed that a majority of those...." or "A November 2004 MSNBC poll said the United States found stockpiles..."?
Maybe such polls exist, maybe they don't. Maybe Don was told they did, and he reported the fact - he may have been told by someone whose integrity he trusted. Maybe that person read a story in a publication he trusted. But unless the actual poll is presented along with the opinion, how far can the trust go? Especially when any link in the chain may have more than the most pure of journalistic intentions at heart. Continuing:
'Religious indoctrination is about as depressing. Journalist Bill Moyers noted in December that the best selling books in recent history are the "Left Behind" series by Timothy LaHaye - adventure yarns about the rapture and other manifestations of the so-called end of days - based on iffy interpretations of scripture. Millions of Bush supporters believe Jesus is returning within a generation.'Here Don did provide a source for his assertion regarding the "Left Behind" series. An assertion I believe, as well. But how does he actually know "millions of Bush supporters believe Jesus is returning in a generation"? What poll or study was that found?
Again, maybe just such a poll exists - if it does, it would greatly boost his credibility among those who might not agree with him.
But mostly it sounds like what's typically bandied about in ultra-liberal blogs and websites - opinions that, when tossed around so much, take on a factual basis of their own, based on their listeners' desire to believe them.
Here's more with a local spin:
'There's reason to believe that millions of fundamentalists - including many in East Tennessee - embrace similar positions. That's a big problem. If I believed the end was near, if I believed Saddam Hussein had something to do with 9/11, I might've voted for Bush, too.'Huh? What makes you think that "millions" of fundamentalists hold similar positions? Word of mouth? Conventional Wisdom? It's one thing to cite CW when you say something like, "Millions of fundamentalists - including many in East Tennessee - believe every word of the Bible is the literal truth". There you're deriving applesauce from apples. The effect is a product of a directly related cause. But when you equate "fundamentalists" to "hyper-confidence in the divine mission of Bush" to "belief the rapture's coming soon, so let's believe anything he says about Saddam" is as big a leap - WITHOUT tangible support - as trying to assert they all believe the moon's made of green cheese.
And it's not just on the liberal side. It's a universal problem that's perpetrated by columnists and pundits and bloggers and radio talk show hosts of every political stripe - the more you say that something is a fact, the more people believe it's a fact, and the more it becomes Conventional Wisdom. When you have millions of listeners or readers, it becomes a handy tool. It's worked well for Rush Limbaugh for 15 years or more.
Finally, I realize it's difficult to get past these things. I believe, yes, that Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin landed and walked on the moon in 1969 - it's been part of my upbringing for 35 years. I've seen the videos, heard the stories, read the textbooks. But how do I really know? Have I seen and analyzed the telemetry data myself? Have I interviewed the men of Apollo 13 myself? No, of course not. But I still believe it - because after 35 years (current conspiracy theorists notwithstanding) I accept it as a wonderful part of human history and would be foolish to disbelieve it.
But 35 years from now, unless we're happy that some of the current Conventional Wisdom arguments will still be around and regarded as "fact", we need to be prepared to demand proof and support for our media's assertions. And not rest until it's provided, willingly.
Because there's your doublespeak. Accepted willingly.
Friday's Feast
Appetizer - Have you been sick yet this winter? If so, what did you come down with?
Amazingly enough, no, not yet at least. Nobody in our family's had anything worse than a little cold lately. Knock on wood.
Soup - What colors dominate your closet?
Browns, earth tones. I'd like more color but can never seem to buy any.
Salad - How would you describe your personal "comfort zone"?
My comfort zone is laying on the couch, watching TV, reading a book and eating a bag of microwave popcorn.
Main Course - On which reality show would you really like to be a contestant?
God, I hate reality shows. But if I had to answer one, I guess The Apprentice. I think I could plan and organize rings around those people, even though I have no real business sense. And I know I could deal with other people better.
Dessert - Which holiday would you consider to be your favorite?
Christmas
Thursday, January 06, 2005
Creepy
Several weeks ago on "The West Wing":
Creepy.
Almost as creepy as the premiere episode of Lone Gunmen depicting a runaway jet almost crashing into the World Trade Center.
The episode aired in August, 2001.
I'm keeping one eye on the TV. Or maybe not...
[There are reports surfacing an asteroid might hit the Earth]
'[White House Aide] Charlie is wondering whether the asteroid "is gonna kill us like it killed the dinosaurs." Well, Charlie, I really don't think it's the same asteroid. Because that one, you know, crashed into the earth and everything. [Deputy Chief of Staff] Josh thinks that the asteroid will miss the earth entirely, but Charlie still wants to know what might happen:
"Likelihood is, it hits an ocean, starts a tsunami, and, you know, surf's up, in Illinois."
[Later]
[President Jed Bartlett] is sitting in his bed with a map of the world spread out in his lap. Jed is explaining that 70 to 80% of the people on the west coast will be killed by the tsunami that would result if the asteroid were to hit the Pacific Ocean.'
Creepy.
Almost as creepy as the premiere episode of Lone Gunmen depicting a runaway jet almost crashing into the World Trade Center.
The episode aired in August, 2001.
I'm keeping one eye on the TV. Or maybe not...
In the Works, Short Hits, and Googlewacking
It's pretty easy to cheat, though. For instance, in the above example I just entered "triskadeskaphobia" (which, incidentally, is fear of the number "13"), then scanned the 50-odd resulting hits for a term in the summary that looked odd. In one of them I found "screaming", entered it as the companion search term, and voila!
Wednesday, January 05, 2005
TV Tuesday
Week 38: Looking forward, looking back.
Welcome to the first TV Tuesday of 2005! It's that special time of year--when we look back at the year that was and look forward to the year that will be. A lot of people make resolutions too. So, this week, we're gonna have a bit of looking forward and bit of looking back...
1. Did you watch more or less TV during the holidays? Did you sample any new shows in repeats or watch reruns of your favorites to catch-up?
My Quest continued to catch up on 5 seasons of The West Wing. Other than watching the prerequisite holiday specials and football, not much.
2. Did you get any TV on DVD as a gift during the holiday season?
Yep, HR Pufnstuf and my kids love it as much as I did.
3. Which do you like more--watching the ball drop in NYC or all the college football bowl games?
Bowl games.
4. Looking forward--are there any mid-season replacements shows or any returning shows your anxious to see?
The Jack Bauer Power Hour, baby. That and the new Battlestar Galactica. I'm also interested in NBC's new Medium show, but I missed the first episode. And of course, The Dead Zone, whenever they decide to start it up again...
(Note: without looking, I have a feeling the above answer is identical to Michael's)
~ BONUS ~ If you watched Dick Clark's Rocking New Year's Eve (hosted by Regis), rate this year's event without Mr. Clark. Was it good, bad? Just OK? Did you miss Dick Clark or was Regis enough for you?
We had 13 people over to our house New Year's Eve, and didn't turn on the TV coverage until about 11:40. I saw Regis a couple of times, and I thought he did fine - I'm surprised to find I didn't miss Dick Clark, but that probably means he didn't really matter that much to me on New Year's Eve in the first place...
Welcome to the first TV Tuesday of 2005! It's that special time of year--when we look back at the year that was and look forward to the year that will be. A lot of people make resolutions too. So, this week, we're gonna have a bit of looking forward and bit of looking back...
1. Did you watch more or less TV during the holidays? Did you sample any new shows in repeats or watch reruns of your favorites to catch-up?
My Quest continued to catch up on 5 seasons of The West Wing. Other than watching the prerequisite holiday specials and football, not much.
2. Did you get any TV on DVD as a gift during the holiday season?
Yep, HR Pufnstuf and my kids love it as much as I did.
3. Which do you like more--watching the ball drop in NYC or all the college football bowl games?
Bowl games.
4. Looking forward--are there any mid-season replacements shows or any returning shows your anxious to see?
The Jack Bauer Power Hour, baby. That and the new Battlestar Galactica. I'm also interested in NBC's new Medium show, but I missed the first episode. And of course, The Dead Zone, whenever they decide to start it up again...
(Note: without looking, I have a feeling the above answer is identical to Michael's)
~ BONUS ~ If you watched Dick Clark's Rocking New Year's Eve (hosted by Regis), rate this year's event without Mr. Clark. Was it good, bad? Just OK? Did you miss Dick Clark or was Regis enough for you?
We had 13 people over to our house New Year's Eve, and didn't turn on the TV coverage until about 11:40. I saw Regis a couple of times, and I thought he did fine - I'm surprised to find I didn't miss Dick Clark, but that probably means he didn't really matter that much to me on New Year's Eve in the first place...
Tuesday, January 04, 2005
Monday, January 03, 2005
Next I'll Be Seeing Rhinos...
Growing up in the East Tennessee foothills, I hear many strange stories and superstitions. There are tales about strange animals that lurk in the woods and the mountains. Skunk apes roam the hills, giant bears reportedly kill and eat stray hikers....it all adds up to a rolling mythos of legends and myths.
One of the greatest myths is that of the live possum. Nobody really ever sees a live possum very often, they're mostly squashed in the middle of the road. But when I opened my front door this morning to go get my newspaper, there he was.
Hobbling across my path, down by the garage doors and around the side of the house.
The kids scurried out to see, for they had likely never seen a live one before either.
We all counted ourselves fortunate to have glimpsed such a rare find, but I happened to think later... what omen does it portend when a possum crosses your path. In the fog. On the first Monday of a new year.
I'll probably regret not running back to bed, but I for one am going to be keeping a sharp eye out for falling safes today.
One of the greatest myths is that of the live possum. Nobody really ever sees a live possum very often, they're mostly squashed in the middle of the road. But when I opened my front door this morning to go get my newspaper, there he was.
Hobbling across my path, down by the garage doors and around the side of the house.
The kids scurried out to see, for they had likely never seen a live one before either.
We all counted ourselves fortunate to have glimpsed such a rare find, but I happened to think later... what omen does it portend when a possum crosses your path. In the fog. On the first Monday of a new year.
I'll probably regret not running back to bed, but I for one am going to be keeping a sharp eye out for falling safes today.
Sunday, January 02, 2005
The Best New Year's Ever
Thursday: Birthday dinner with family, parents and in-laws at Conners in Turkey Creek. Back home for presents and cake.
Friday: Took BrainyBoy and Tink to the SpongeBob Movie, then welcomed 6 adults, 2 teens and 5 kids into our house for a Sumptious Buffet (tm) and New Years Eve festivities. Played "Cranium" and a new game called"This..." "Things...", and we all rang in the New Year on time.
Saturday: Slept till 10, watched the Vols trounce Texas A&M in the Cotton Bowl, ate leftovers from the Sumptuous Buffet (tm), played board games with my kids, and stayed in my pajamas all day long.
It was the Best New Year's Ever.
Friday: Took BrainyBoy and Tink to the SpongeBob Movie, then welcomed 6 adults, 2 teens and 5 kids into our house for a Sumptious Buffet (tm) and New Years Eve festivities. Played "Cranium" and a new game called
Saturday: Slept till 10, watched the Vols trounce Texas A&M in the Cotton Bowl, ate leftovers from the Sumptuous Buffet (tm), played board games with my kids, and stayed in my pajamas all day long.
It was the Best New Year's Ever.
Saturday, January 01, 2005
Friday's Feast
*I usually don't "theme" the questions here, but decided to do it this week in honor of 2004. Happy New Year 2005 to all of you! Come back next week to see the fancy new look!*
Appetizer
Using only 5 words, describe how 2004 went for you.
Vacationed too much...who cares?
Soup
Name something you did in 2004 that you'll probably never do again.
Worked out of state on a theatre-related job. I have a feeling, although they say they'd like me back again, that my 2-week stint in Florida as Music Director for a show was a one-time thing.
Salad
What did you learn about yourself in 2004?
That I'm not perfect.
Main Course
What notable news event from 2004 will stand out most in your memory?
Probably the election, since almost all the news coverage was related to it in some way.
Dessert
Name something you purchased in 2004 that you really, really like.
My Star Wars Trilogy DVD.
Thursday, December 30, 2004
The Master's Voice
An interesting interview with John Williams, film composer and Kenneday Center Award recipient, on his composing process and the progress he's made so far on Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith
Birthday Conversations
(Tink comes bouncing into the bedroom this morning)
Tink: Happy Birthday Daddy! How old are you?
I'm 12.
No you're not....
Ok, ok. I'm 13.
(laughing) No!!
Actually, I'm 4700 years old...
Daddy!!
...but I don't feel a day over 4500.
(pause) Huh?
(some jokes kids just don't get till they're older...)
Tink: Happy Birthday Daddy! How old are you?
I'm 12.
No you're not....
Ok, ok. I'm 13.
(laughing) No!!
Actually, I'm 4700 years old...
Daddy!!
...but I don't feel a day over 4500.
(pause) Huh?
(some jokes kids just don't get till they're older...)
Wednesday, December 29, 2004
We're Home
Driving in the snow and ice is not fun, kiddees.
West Tennessee this Christmas was a Winter Wonderland, for sure. The storm that didn't quite make it to Knoxville hit Jackson, TN and socked in the town for a couple of days.
We normally leave mid-Christmas morning to head down to Jackson and several days of visiting my wife's family, but this year we had to delay a day to let some of the ice melt that plagued that city's streets.
So Christmas Day this year, for the first time in our kids' lives, was spent at home. And for those out year who might come up with such a situation, it might be best to plan ahead for just an eventuality. Like stocking up with some extra food, since nothing's open on Christmas Day.
Well, almost nothing. Santa brought a 'Smores Maker, which under normal circumstances would crank out some delicious hot 'Smores. Santa not being a weatherman, however, did not foresee his hooligan recipients actually wanting to use the blamed thing that day, so Santa did not think to actually stock up on the things you use to make 'Smores. You know, little things like chocolate bars. Graham Crackers. Big honkin' marshmelons. Sterno.
So pop trundles out into the big, wide, quite world in search of 'Smores fixin's.
Uh-uh.
Walgreens is the only store of note open, and while I did find the last box of Graham Crackers (exp date: 05/1997) and a cluster of Hershey bars there wasn't much else. So no 'Smores Who Saved Christmas.
But we did make Icees.
West Tennessee this Christmas was a Winter Wonderland, for sure. The storm that didn't quite make it to Knoxville hit Jackson, TN and socked in the town for a couple of days.
We normally leave mid-Christmas morning to head down to Jackson and several days of visiting my wife's family, but this year we had to delay a day to let some of the ice melt that plagued that city's streets.
So Christmas Day this year, for the first time in our kids' lives, was spent at home. And for those out year who might come up with such a situation, it might be best to plan ahead for just an eventuality. Like stocking up with some extra food, since nothing's open on Christmas Day.
Well, almost nothing. Santa brought a 'Smores Maker, which under normal circumstances would crank out some delicious hot 'Smores. Santa not being a weatherman, however, did not foresee his hooligan recipients actually wanting to use the blamed thing that day, so Santa did not think to actually stock up on the things you use to make 'Smores. You know, little things like chocolate bars. Graham Crackers. Big honkin' marshmelons. Sterno.
So pop trundles out into the big, wide, quite world in search of 'Smores fixin's.
Uh-uh.
Walgreens is the only store of note open, and while I did find the last box of Graham Crackers (exp date: 05/1997) and a cluster of Hershey bars there wasn't much else. So no 'Smores Who Saved Christmas.
But we did make Icees.
Friday, December 24, 2004
Thursday, December 23, 2004
All Healthy and Stuff
L. and I got our flu shots yesterday - they had some extra at the hospital, and were opening it up to all employees who wanted one.
I can't recall ever actually getting the flu, and I don't remember if L.'s had it any time recently or not. Mainly I want to make sure I wouldn't pass it on to the kids.
I'm a little amazed there were any left over for us - neither of us work directly with patient care - but apparently there were still some patient-care employees that didn't get them.
Good grief. Hope they don't come into contact with anyone who has the flu, and in doing so give it to someone else just because they couldn't be bothered to walk over to Employee Health.
People, if the shot's available - take it. As of 12/11, flu activity is still Sporadic in Tennessee, but more widespread in Kentucky and North Carolina, and evidently pretty heavy up in New York state.
I can't recall ever actually getting the flu, and I don't remember if L.'s had it any time recently or not. Mainly I want to make sure I wouldn't pass it on to the kids.
I'm a little amazed there were any left over for us - neither of us work directly with patient care - but apparently there were still some patient-care employees that didn't get them.
Good grief. Hope they don't come into contact with anyone who has the flu, and in doing so give it to someone else just because they couldn't be bothered to walk over to Employee Health.
People, if the shot's available - take it. As of 12/11, flu activity is still Sporadic in Tennessee, but more widespread in Kentucky and North Carolina, and evidently pretty heavy up in New York state.
Theatre Thursday
Week 31 - Revisionist History
Have you sat in the theatre, watched the characters do something impossible, and thought to yourself, "There's no way that could really happen..."
Here's your chance to set the record straight. Think of a scene from any movie that physically or logically shouldn't have been able to happen: The car that made the impossible jump..The soldier who blows away 500 soldiers without getting a scratch...The couple that amazingly run into each other after 50 years apart...
Then rewrite the scene, or write another scene to show how it should have gone.
(See previous post for my answer)
Have you sat in the theatre, watched the characters do something impossible, and thought to yourself, "There's no way that could really happen..."
Here's your chance to set the record straight. Think of a scene from any movie that physically or logically shouldn't have been able to happen: The car that made the impossible jump..The soldier who blows away 500 soldiers without getting a scratch...The couple that amazingly run into each other after 50 years apart...
Then rewrite the scene, or write another scene to show how it should have gone.
(See previous post for my answer)
The Way It Should've Gone...
We see it all the time - our hero defies all odds and harnesses incredible luck to accomplish his goal. Whether defusing a bomb, rescuing a princess or merely getting to work on time, the main characters in movies always seem to have everything work out correctly for them. Even the longest odds and most far-fetched situations can be overcome by that most magic of artifacts: poetic license.
What would movies be like if those on-in-a-million chance shots failed and the far more likely and plausible solutions occured?
Let's take a look, shall we....
Scene: The Death Star Command Center
Death Star Officer: Governor Tarkin? Our sensors have picked up a small freighter attempting to join the battle.
Tarkin: Is it one of ours?
Death Star Officer: No sir, it appears to be the same YT-1300 freighter that we had captured several hours ago, and led us here via the homing device. The Millenium Falcon, sir.
Tarkin: How interesting. Captain Solo is quite resourceful - he may be a potential danger. What is his heading?
Death Star Officer: He's on a direct course for Lord Vader and the single remaining X-Wing, sir.
Tarkin: (considering) Did he think he would fly right up there under our very noses, without being detected and dealt with? Very well. Warn Lord Vader and dispatch two reserve squadrons to destroy the freighter.
Death Star Officer: Yes sir.
(pause)
Death Star Officer: The Millenium Falcon has been destroyed, sir.
(Tarkin's tight grin widens slightly)
-------------------------------------
(More to come. Feel free to add your own)
What would movies be like if those on-in-a-million chance shots failed and the far more likely and plausible solutions occured?
Let's take a look, shall we....
Scene: The Death Star Command Center
Death Star Officer: Governor Tarkin? Our sensors have picked up a small freighter attempting to join the battle.
Tarkin: Is it one of ours?
Death Star Officer: No sir, it appears to be the same YT-1300 freighter that we had captured several hours ago, and led us here via the homing device. The Millenium Falcon, sir.
Tarkin: How interesting. Captain Solo is quite resourceful - he may be a potential danger. What is his heading?
Death Star Officer: He's on a direct course for Lord Vader and the single remaining X-Wing, sir.
Tarkin: (considering) Did he think he would fly right up there under our very noses, without being detected and dealt with? Very well. Warn Lord Vader and dispatch two reserve squadrons to destroy the freighter.
Death Star Officer: Yes sir.
(pause)
Death Star Officer: The Millenium Falcon has been destroyed, sir.
(Tarkin's tight grin widens slightly)
-------------------------------------
(More to come. Feel free to add your own)
Wednesday, December 22, 2004
Still Feel the Same Way?
Hey Heisman voters:
Still confident you picked the guy with the best character in 1997?
1. Woodson, Anderson arrested early Monday
2. Manning comes up short, but in a classy way
Still confident you picked the guy with the best character in 1997?
1. Woodson, Anderson arrested early Monday
"Four-time Pro Bowl cornerback Charles Woodson and safety Marques Anderson were arrested early Monday for investigation of public intoxication following the Raiders' victory over the Tennessee Titans.
...
n May 2000, Woodson was named in warrants charging him with drunken driving and driving with a suspended license in Ann Arbor, Mich., where he won the 1997 Heisman Trophy for Michigan. Police said he registered a blood-alcohol level of 0.24 percent, more than twice Michigan's legal limit."
2. Manning comes up short, but in a classy way
" Sure, Manning could have thrown what would have been his 48th touchdown pass of the season to tie the record Dan Marino set in 1984. But with the Ravens refusing to use either of their remaining two timeouts, the right thing to do was kneel. And that was what Manning did. Twice.Emphasis mine.
...
'There at the end, I can't get over the crowd booing,' Manning said afterward. 'I hope those were Baltimore fans because (kneeling) is just the way you're supposed to do it.'
Absolutely.
Peyton Manning had a lot of respect for the Ray Lewis-led Ravens defense.
It showed class. It showed dignity. It showed everything Manning has been about through the entire chase."
Tuesday, December 21, 2004
At The Turning of the Year
This is one of my favorite days of the year.
Dec. 21st - Winter Solstice. The day where darkness reigns supreme and daylight only shows for a brief season.
From now on, inexorably, the days will get ever longer and the nights ever shorter.
Although the cold weather will not abate for several months, the light will eventually overcome the dark.
Something to look forward to.
Dec. 21st - Winter Solstice. The day where darkness reigns supreme and daylight only shows for a brief season.
From now on, inexorably, the days will get ever longer and the nights ever shorter.
Although the cold weather will not abate for several months, the light will eventually overcome the dark.
Something to look forward to.
TV Tuesday
Week 36 - Christmas Specials
Only four more days until Christmas! And then means only one thing--only four more days of Christmas specials! Every year, there are classics that are shown and a couple of new specials try to gain the title of classic. This week, we'll look at those Christmas specials.
1. What is your favorite Christmas special?
I always loved John Denver and the Muppets: A Christmas Together. I need to find the soundtrack on CD...the 12 Days of Muppet Christmas was a classic :)
2. Do you have a Christmas special that you don't care for as much?
Never watched the White House Christmas Special. Never cared.
3. One recent trend is making sequels to popular or successful Christmas specials. Do you like or dislike this trend? Why?
I don't think I've noticed many. I did see a couple of trends this year I hadn't seen before - sequels to classic Christmas specials. So far I've seen two new Charlie Brown Christmas tales, one with Rerun (! - Linus and Lucy's little brother introduced to the strip in later years) and several of Snoopy's brothers. The music was the same as the classic special, but it's mostly about the Van Pelt family. I remarked to my family in my best Ian Malcom/Jeff Goldblum voice at one point during the show, "This show actually is about Charlie Brown, right?
I also saw a "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" sequel made in CGI that was....odd.
4. Is there a book, story or song just waiting to be turned into a great Christmas special?
You know, they should turn that old Charles Dickens novel, "A Christmas Carol" into a holiday special... nobody's ever done that one before...
~ BONUS ~ Share some of your favorite memories of Christmas specials growing up. Also, if you have kids, what is the one Christmas special that you look forward to sharing with them either when they're old enough or each year?
"Santa Claus is Coming To Town", which they've seen twice this year....and I've missed both times. Rats. Maybe next year.
Only four more days until Christmas! And then means only one thing--only four more days of Christmas specials! Every year, there are classics that are shown and a couple of new specials try to gain the title of classic. This week, we'll look at those Christmas specials.
1. What is your favorite Christmas special?
I always loved John Denver and the Muppets: A Christmas Together. I need to find the soundtrack on CD...the 12 Days of Muppet Christmas was a classic :)
2. Do you have a Christmas special that you don't care for as much?
Never watched the White House Christmas Special. Never cared.
3. One recent trend is making sequels to popular or successful Christmas specials. Do you like or dislike this trend? Why?
I don't think I've noticed many. I did see a couple of trends this year I hadn't seen before - sequels to classic Christmas specials. So far I've seen two new Charlie Brown Christmas tales, one with Rerun (! - Linus and Lucy's little brother introduced to the strip in later years) and several of Snoopy's brothers. The music was the same as the classic special, but it's mostly about the Van Pelt family. I remarked to my family in my best Ian Malcom/Jeff Goldblum voice at one point during the show, "This show actually is about Charlie Brown, right?
I also saw a "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" sequel made in CGI that was....odd.
4. Is there a book, story or song just waiting to be turned into a great Christmas special?
You know, they should turn that old Charles Dickens novel, "A Christmas Carol" into a holiday special... nobody's ever done that one before...
~ BONUS ~ Share some of your favorite memories of Christmas specials growing up. Also, if you have kids, what is the one Christmas special that you look forward to sharing with them either when they're old enough or each year?
"Santa Claus is Coming To Town", which they've seen twice this year....and I've missed both times. Rats. Maybe next year.
Monday, December 20, 2004
I've Died and Gone to Key West...
Got this last night as a Christmas present:
Because I am, at heart, just a Cheeseburger in Paradise.
Because I am, at heart, just a Cheeseburger in Paradise.
Changes Gotta Come
It's coming up on my 2nd blogiversary in January. I can hardly believe I've been running the Inn for almost 2 years now... My birthday's coming up in 10 days, if anyone's interested as well. ;)
So here's my question. A lot of people have redesigned their pages recently, and very few bloggers I know have the same design they started with.
Well, strange as it may seem coming from a professional web designer, but I haven't changed my layout since the day I started blogging. For the new year and to start my 3rd year of blogging, should I redecorate the Inn?
If so, what should I change? What should I add? Do you like graphics, or straight text? Give me your feedback and I'll make a decision after Christmas.
So here's my question. A lot of people have redesigned their pages recently, and very few bloggers I know have the same design they started with.
Well, strange as it may seem coming from a professional web designer, but I haven't changed my layout since the day I started blogging. For the new year and to start my 3rd year of blogging, should I redecorate the Inn?
If so, what should I change? What should I add? Do you like graphics, or straight text? Give me your feedback and I'll make a decision after Christmas.
Friday, December 17, 2004
Which literature classic are you?
J.R.R. Tolkien: Lord of the Rings. You are
entertaining and imaginative, creating whole
new worlds around yourself. Well loved, you
have a whole league of imitators, none of which
is quite as profound as you are. Stories and
songs give a spark of joy in the middle of your
eternal battle with the forces of evil.
Which literature classic are you?
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I'm Legal
Finally went and got my car license renewed today downtown at the Courthouse. No more driving around with an expired tag!
Yes, I am now a somebody again.
Yes, I am now a somebody again.
Friday's Feast
Appetizer
What is something that never fails to grab your attention?
People laughing, and kids laughing.
Soup
Who was the last person who gave you money, and what was it for?
The guy at the drive-thru window at McDonald's - he gave me my change back.
Salad
If you were a Smurf, what would your name be?
Director Smurf
Main Course
Do you believe in astrology? Why or why not?
No, because a) it has no basis in fact, b) it's random and only fits the circumstances by coincidence, and c) well, duh..
Dessert
Have you seen any snow this year yet? What's the weather like today in your area?
We had some major flurries a few days ago, but nothing has stuck yet. We're supposed to see more on Sunday but no word on expected accumulation. Being in East Tennessee, I'm sure the grocery stores will be packed all day Saturday. Other than that's it's just been col-l-l-l-l-l-ld.
Thursday, December 16, 2004
3 Things
Three Names You Go By:
1. Barry
2. Mr. Barry
3. Daddy
Three Screennames You Have:
1. Barry
2. Joshua
3. Phoenix
Three Things You Like About Yourself:
1. My ability to sense what other people are feeling, and adjust my interaction with them accordingly
2. My love and respect for kids, and the fact I enjoy just being around and teaching kids
3. I try to find the good in people and the hope and promise in different situations, rather than looking for and assuming that bad is inevitable.
Three Things You Hate/Dislike About Yourself:
1. Judgementalism
2. I have a memory like a broken sieve
3. Very difficult to admit I was wrong about something, or that I screwed up.
Three Parts of Your Heritage:
1. Scotch
2. Irish
3. Since both sides of my family have lived in East Tennessee for decades and probably centuries, probably some Cherokee somewhere down the line.
Three Things That Scare You:
1. Nuclear weapons
2. Letting my kids out of my attention range for more than a half-second.
3. Guns, and the thought of #2 mixing with #3
Three of Your Everyday Essentials
1. James Lileks
2. Big Orange Michael
3. seductive kisses
Three Things You Are Wearing Right Now
1. White cable-knit sweater
2. Brown loafers
3. Light blue tank top under the sweater
Three of Your Favorite Bands/Artists (at the moment):
1. The Beatles
2. Huey Lewis and the News
3. Phil Collins/Genesis
Three of Your Favorite Songs at Present:
1. "When You Wish Upon a Star" from Pinocchio and "Circle of Life" from Lion King
2. "The Long and Winding Road" by the Beatles
3. "Stars" and "Bring Him Home" from Les Miserables
Three New Things You Want to Try in the Next 12 Months:
1. A new career direction
2. Play in a racquetball league and really get myself and family into going to our fitness center a lot more
3. Finish the home improvements we've been planning for years.
Three Things You Want in a Relationship (love is a given):
1. Quality Time
2. Physical Closeness
3. Partnership, Teamwork and Mutual Respect
Two Truths and a Lie:
1. I once had a date laugh in my face when I tried to kiss her goodnight, and continue laughing as I beat a hasty retreat down the front steps to my car.
2. My college roommate and I once collected so many old pizza delivery boxes they stacked higher than our heads in the kitchen, until we discovered the colony of roaches that mistook them for condos.
3. I played the Tin Man in my 6th grade school play, complete with silver makeup, silver cardboard cylinder costume and silver wooden axe that I still own to this day.
Which is the lie? Guess in the Comments
Three Physical Things About the Opposite Sex (or same) That Appeal to You:
1. Full head of hair - my wife's is brown, and she lets it grow out occasionally, and occasionally keeps it short - but I've always loved long, full hair.
2. Eyes that smile and mirror an inner happiness
3. Um...those..you know.... Both of 'em. Well, I do...
Three Things You Just Can’t Do:
1. Roll my tongue into a tube
2. Remember what I came into the kitchen for...
3. Watch a UT football game without getting upset about something.
Three of Your Favorite Hobbies:
1. Reading
2. Watching my kids discover something new and wonderful
3. Childhood nostalgia (70's Saturday Morning TV, etc)
Three Things You Want to do Really Badly Right Now:
1. Take an Aleve
2. Go home and nap on the couch for about three hours
3. Change the hearts and minds of all Americans and convince everyone to start celebrating the Christmas season in December, not September.
Three Careers You’re Considering:
1. Theatre Directing
2. New Media Internet Production
3. Space Exploration (hey, never hurts to be prepared)
Bonus. Buy a boat and become a beach bum in St. Maartin
Three Places You Want to Go on Vacation:
1. Any island in the Caribbean with a "St." in front of it
2. Disney World
3. Scotland
Three Kids Names:
1. Frank Hardy
2. Jupiter Jones
3. Ramona Geraldine Quimby
Three Things You Want to Do Before You Die:
1. Direct a play. A real play, or a musical. For a lot of people, somewhere important and relevant that can get me noticed.
2. Hang glide
3. Conduct a symphony. Wait, conduct "Pines of Rome". Or "American Symphony" from Mr. Holland's Opus. Or anything from Star Wars. Or "1812 Overture". Or "Ride of the Valkyries". Or....
(Hat tip to Sugarfused)
1. Barry
2. Mr. Barry
3. Daddy
Three Screennames You Have:
1. Barry
2. Joshua
3. Phoenix
Three Things You Like About Yourself:
1. My ability to sense what other people are feeling, and adjust my interaction with them accordingly
2. My love and respect for kids, and the fact I enjoy just being around and teaching kids
3. I try to find the good in people and the hope and promise in different situations, rather than looking for and assuming that bad is inevitable.
Three Things You Hate/Dislike About Yourself:
1. Judgementalism
2. I have a memory like a broken sieve
3. Very difficult to admit I was wrong about something, or that I screwed up.
Three Parts of Your Heritage:
1. Scotch
2. Irish
3. Since both sides of my family have lived in East Tennessee for decades and probably centuries, probably some Cherokee somewhere down the line.
Three Things That Scare You:
1. Nuclear weapons
2. Letting my kids out of my attention range for more than a half-second.
3. Guns, and the thought of #2 mixing with #3
Three of Your Everyday Essentials
1. James Lileks
2. Big Orange Michael
3. seductive kisses
Three Things You Are Wearing Right Now
1. White cable-knit sweater
2. Brown loafers
3. Light blue tank top under the sweater
Three of Your Favorite Bands/Artists (at the moment):
1. The Beatles
2. Huey Lewis and the News
3. Phil Collins/Genesis
Three of Your Favorite Songs at Present:
1. "When You Wish Upon a Star" from Pinocchio and "Circle of Life" from Lion King
2. "The Long and Winding Road" by the Beatles
3. "Stars" and "Bring Him Home" from Les Miserables
Three New Things You Want to Try in the Next 12 Months:
1. A new career direction
2. Play in a racquetball league and really get myself and family into going to our fitness center a lot more
3. Finish the home improvements we've been planning for years.
Three Things You Want in a Relationship (love is a given):
1. Quality Time
2. Physical Closeness
3. Partnership, Teamwork and Mutual Respect
Two Truths and a Lie:
1. I once had a date laugh in my face when I tried to kiss her goodnight, and continue laughing as I beat a hasty retreat down the front steps to my car.
2. My college roommate and I once collected so many old pizza delivery boxes they stacked higher than our heads in the kitchen, until we discovered the colony of roaches that mistook them for condos.
3. I played the Tin Man in my 6th grade school play, complete with silver makeup, silver cardboard cylinder costume and silver wooden axe that I still own to this day.
Which is the lie? Guess in the Comments
Three Physical Things About the Opposite Sex (or same) That Appeal to You:
1. Full head of hair - my wife's is brown, and she lets it grow out occasionally, and occasionally keeps it short - but I've always loved long, full hair.
2. Eyes that smile and mirror an inner happiness
3. Um...those..you know.... Both of 'em. Well, I do...
Three Things You Just Can’t Do:
1. Roll my tongue into a tube
2. Remember what I came into the kitchen for...
3. Watch a UT football game without getting upset about something.
Three of Your Favorite Hobbies:
1. Reading
2. Watching my kids discover something new and wonderful
3. Childhood nostalgia (70's Saturday Morning TV, etc)
Three Things You Want to do Really Badly Right Now:
1. Take an Aleve
2. Go home and nap on the couch for about three hours
3. Change the hearts and minds of all Americans and convince everyone to start celebrating the Christmas season in December, not September.
Three Careers You’re Considering:
1. Theatre Directing
2. New Media Internet Production
3. Space Exploration (hey, never hurts to be prepared)
Bonus. Buy a boat and become a beach bum in St. Maartin
Three Places You Want to Go on Vacation:
1. Any island in the Caribbean with a "St." in front of it
2. Disney World
3. Scotland
Three Kids Names:
1. Frank Hardy
2. Jupiter Jones
3. Ramona Geraldine Quimby
Three Things You Want to Do Before You Die:
1. Direct a play. A real play, or a musical. For a lot of people, somewhere important and relevant that can get me noticed.
2. Hang glide
3. Conduct a symphony. Wait, conduct "Pines of Rome". Or "American Symphony" from Mr. Holland's Opus. Or anything from Star Wars. Or "1812 Overture". Or "Ride of the Valkyries". Or....
(Hat tip to Sugarfused)
Theatre Thursday
Week 30 - That's a wrap.
We've come to the end of another year, almost. So it's time to pick the best (and worst) of 2004.
1) Which movie do you think was THE BEST of 2004? The worst?
This year I saw (in theatres:) The Incredibles, National Treasure, Shrek II, Spiderman II, The Terminal, Passion of the Christ, Home on the Range, Walking Tall, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (and on DVD:) Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Master and Commander, and I, Robot.
My favorite movie of the year - probably Passion of the Christ. Least favorite (of those I saw) - Walking Tall.
2) If you were handing out the Oscar's this year, who would pick as Best Actor and Actress. Name the actor/actress and the film.
Best Actor: Tom Hanks, The Terminal. Best Actress: Maia Morgenstern, Passion of the Christ (Mary)
3) The category is 'best film of 2004'. There are 5 nominees. What 5 movies would be on your list.
Top 5 of what I saw: POTC, The Incredibles, The Terminal, Harry Potter, and Spiderman II.
BONUS) Is there a moving coming out in the upcoming year that you're excited to see? If so, what is it?
Heh. I don't know, gonna have to give that one some serious thought.
We've come to the end of another year, almost. So it's time to pick the best (and worst) of 2004.
1) Which movie do you think was THE BEST of 2004? The worst?
This year I saw (in theatres:) The Incredibles, National Treasure, Shrek II, Spiderman II, The Terminal, Passion of the Christ, Home on the Range, Walking Tall, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (and on DVD:) Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Master and Commander, and I, Robot.
My favorite movie of the year - probably Passion of the Christ. Least favorite (of those I saw) - Walking Tall.
2) If you were handing out the Oscar's this year, who would pick as Best Actor and Actress. Name the actor/actress and the film.
Best Actor: Tom Hanks, The Terminal. Best Actress: Maia Morgenstern, Passion of the Christ (Mary)
3) The category is 'best film of 2004'. There are 5 nominees. What 5 movies would be on your list.
Top 5 of what I saw: POTC, The Incredibles, The Terminal, Harry Potter, and Spiderman II.
BONUS) Is there a moving coming out in the upcoming year that you're excited to see? If so, what is it?
Heh. I don't know, gonna have to give that one some serious thought.
Wednesday, December 15, 2004
Life Support
The hard drive on my main work PC seems to be dying. I got a dreaded "UNABLE TO READ BOOT DRIVE" error message this morning.
Still waiting for the tech docs to come take a look, but till then all I hear is the cardiac monitor:
Beep.
(pause)
Beep.
(longer pause)
Beep.
UPDATE:
Beep.
Beep.
Beep. Beep.
Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep.
Things are looking up!
Still waiting for the tech docs to come take a look, but till then all I hear is the cardiac monitor:
Beep.
(pause)
Beep.
(longer pause)
Beep.
UPDATE:
Beep.
Beep.
Beep. Beep.
Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep.
Things are looking up!
What a Weekend - Part 3
While I was tooling around town rescuing stranded motorists and generally making the world safe for all mankind, L. was picking up the kids.
On the way home, she noticed lights behind her. Blue lights.
Obediently pulling over, she was cited for driving with expired tags. Actually, she wasn't cited - I was cited, because she was driving my car.
Several months ago - ok, it was last December - my tag renewal form should've come in the mail like everyone else's. It didn't, and I promptly forgot about it.
I realized sometime in May or June that I never got my renewal form, so the sticker on my license plate still says '03. That fact would bounce around my consciousness for the next several months until it got to be about November, when I realized it would probably be a good idea to, you know, get legal.
You can see how well I took my own advice.
So now, I have to show up in court in January to show proof I have renewed my tags. That should be all that required (no fines) but we're afraid there may be court costs. I'll let you know.
Now I have to find time to drive downtown to the courthouse, figure a way to get myself back into the system and get legal again so I can get out of this thing. Meanwhile, the citation is in my car - if I get stopped again, it will be my shield against further citations.
Maybe.
On the way home, she noticed lights behind her. Blue lights.
Obediently pulling over, she was cited for driving with expired tags. Actually, she wasn't cited - I was cited, because she was driving my car.
Several months ago - ok, it was last December - my tag renewal form should've come in the mail like everyone else's. It didn't, and I promptly forgot about it.
I realized sometime in May or June that I never got my renewal form, so the sticker on my license plate still says '03. That fact would bounce around my consciousness for the next several months until it got to be about November, when I realized it would probably be a good idea to, you know, get legal.
You can see how well I took my own advice.
So now, I have to show up in court in January to show proof I have renewed my tags. That should be all that required (no fines) but we're afraid there may be court costs. I'll let you know.
Now I have to find time to drive downtown to the courthouse, figure a way to get myself back into the system and get legal again so I can get out of this thing. Meanwhile, the citation is in my car - if I get stopped again, it will be my shield against further citations.
Maybe.
Tuesday, December 14, 2004
What a Weekend - Part 2
Well, meanwhile, David's teenage daughter has a chorus concert this evening. She's getting a ride with one of her friends back to the friend's house to change, then David is to pick the two kids up and take them to the movies (and meet our church youth group for a later lockin).
Confusin', ain't it?
I drop off the van at 8:45, leave the keys at the front desk and wait in the van in the rain for David. He pulls up and I climb in, as he takes a call from his daughter - her friend's dad's SUV has a flat. In the dark, in the cold, in the pouring rain.
We're off to the rescue.
By the time we find them a few streets over, we notice numerous other cars pulled off with their hazards on. The friend's dad has finished changing the tire, and tells us part of the street has washed out creating a huge pothole. It actually twisted the rim of the wheel out of shape, and apparently did the same to several other cars.
We follow them to their house, get out and let the girls change while we wait. Turns out the dad belongs to the fitness club we belong to, and plays racquetball...and it just so happens I've been looking for a racquetball partner. Well, whaddya know.
Somewhere it's written in teenage girls' genes that it requires a minimum of 30 minutes to change their clothes, so about 45 minutes later we're headed back out again to the movie theatre.
At this point, I'm along for the ride. Ah, what the heck.
We get to the movies, drop the girls off then run by the grocery store so I can grab a few essentials. Then back to home...
David helps me carry the groceries up to the front door and comes in with me for a moment.
L. meets me at the door. "Guess what. You have a court date..."
(to be continued...)
Confusin', ain't it?
I drop off the van at 8:45, leave the keys at the front desk and wait in the van in the rain for David. He pulls up and I climb in, as he takes a call from his daughter - her friend's dad's SUV has a flat. In the dark, in the cold, in the pouring rain.
We're off to the rescue.
By the time we find them a few streets over, we notice numerous other cars pulled off with their hazards on. The friend's dad has finished changing the tire, and tells us part of the street has washed out creating a huge pothole. It actually twisted the rim of the wheel out of shape, and apparently did the same to several other cars.
We follow them to their house, get out and let the girls change while we wait. Turns out the dad belongs to the fitness club we belong to, and plays racquetball...and it just so happens I've been looking for a racquetball partner. Well, whaddya know.
Somewhere it's written in teenage girls' genes that it requires a minimum of 30 minutes to change their clothes, so about 45 minutes later we're headed back out again to the movie theatre.
At this point, I'm along for the ride. Ah, what the heck.
We get to the movies, drop the girls off then run by the grocery store so I can grab a few essentials. Then back to home...
David helps me carry the groceries up to the front door and comes in with me for a moment.
L. meets me at the door. "Guess what. You have a court date..."
(to be continued...)
Monday, December 13, 2004
What a Weekend
Ok, everyone out there who really wants to hear about the exhausting, emotionally draining weekend I had, raise your hands...
(crickets chirp)
Ok, fine. I'll tell you anyway.
Friday night was Parents Night Out at our church, so we made plans with two other couples to drop all our kids off and go out together for dinner, then go back to one of their houses to hang out and play Cranium. So very domestic, yes, but after the past week so very soothing.
Those of you who are local will remember, however, that the floodgates continued to swing wide open and the deluge ensued all day and all night...
I left work a couple of minutes early to pick up some dry cleaning, and began getting the cell phone calls. First letting me know we had reservations at 6:15, then informing me that some of the group might be late, being stuck in the rain traffic.
Myself (always thinking ahead) picks up the cleaning, drops it off at home and heads to the church to meet L. and the kids. My wife was just leaving the pede's office from Tink's checkup, and we get there around the same time at about 5:30. Patiently, we wait for at least one of the other two couples to make it, but 6:00 rolls around and still neither one. I decide to press on to the restaurant to make sure we keep our reservation - braving West Town Mall holiday shoppers, various car wrecks, rampaging rhinos - and get to the restaurant. In time to see one half of the couples is there, waiting, reservation taken care of.
So eventually everyone trickles in, and we have a nice Italian meal.
But there's a 9:00 deadline - I have to drop off our van at the dealer for some work, and they close the gates at 9, which requires a lift back from there. There's no time for going back to someone's house, so we call it a night. One of our friends, David, volunteers to follow me out to the dealership out west while L. takes David's wife back to the church to collect all our kids.
And the rain, rain, rain comes down, down, down...(to be continued...)
(crickets chirp)
Ok, fine. I'll tell you anyway.
Friday night was Parents Night Out at our church, so we made plans with two other couples to drop all our kids off and go out together for dinner, then go back to one of their houses to hang out and play Cranium. So very domestic, yes, but after the past week so very soothing.
Those of you who are local will remember, however, that the floodgates continued to swing wide open and the deluge ensued all day and all night...
I left work a couple of minutes early to pick up some dry cleaning, and began getting the cell phone calls. First letting me know we had reservations at 6:15, then informing me that some of the group might be late, being stuck in the rain traffic.
Myself (always thinking ahead) picks up the cleaning, drops it off at home and heads to the church to meet L. and the kids. My wife was just leaving the pede's office from Tink's checkup, and we get there around the same time at about 5:30. Patiently, we wait for at least one of the other two couples to make it, but 6:00 rolls around and still neither one. I decide to press on to the restaurant to make sure we keep our reservation - braving West Town Mall holiday shoppers, various car wrecks, rampaging rhinos - and get to the restaurant. In time to see one half of the couples is there, waiting, reservation taken care of.
So eventually everyone trickles in, and we have a nice Italian meal.
But there's a 9:00 deadline - I have to drop off our van at the dealer for some work, and they close the gates at 9, which requires a lift back from there. There's no time for going back to someone's house, so we call it a night. One of our friends, David, volunteers to follow me out to the dealership out west while L. takes David's wife back to the church to collect all our kids.
And the rain, rain, rain comes down, down, down...(to be continued...)
Friday, December 10, 2004
Friends
Go over to Teresa's (Hatamaran's) place and get ready to give her some good vibes, because she just got some very bad news about a furry friend...
Friday's Feast
Appetizer
Make up a word and give us its definition.
Partisandbox (par-ti-sand'-box) [n] - A state of political being where your side is correct, only correct, always correct no matter who's making the speeches or running for office, and all others are hopelessly wrong, stupid or evil.
Soup
What is currently your favorite song?
I don't really have one right now. There's a song my wife and a friend and I are singing in church this Sunday called "The Lord is With You" that's a gorgeous trio between Joseph, Mary and Gabriel - I guess that's my favorite right now.
Salad
What's at the top of your Christmas wish list this year?
Peace on Earth, Goodwill toward men. And Puppets. And also chickens.
Main Course
Name a scent that reminds you of someone special in your life.
The smell of hot buttered popcorn reminds me of someone very special: Orville Redenbacher.
Just kidding :)
Actually my wife used to wear Colors perfume when we were dating and first married, and that always reminds me of a very special time in my life :)
Dessert
Who is someone on television that you feel probably shouldn't be, and why?
You want the long list, or the short list?
Let's see:
Jerry Springer
Anyone connected with WWE
Sean Hannity
I'm sure I'll add others as they occur to me.
Thursday, December 09, 2004
BoB Awards
The Best of Blogs (BoB) Awards seek to recognize the best personal blogs of the year. We strive to recognize the smaller blogs in categories that other competitions would never think to honor. You want political blogs? Sorry, nothing to see here, move along. You want to vote for the Snarkiest Blog? Best Sex Blog? Best Knitting or Crafting Blog? Now you're talking!
Nominations start December 10.
(Hat tip to Sugarfused and Busy Mom)
YES!!!! Just Pack Me Up and Blast Me Off!
Congress OKs private-spaceflight bill
But if this means a step closer to my kids getting to go into space - even better.
(Note to Brainyboy and Tink: Just remember your old man, huh?)
"The Commercial Space Launch Amendments Act, or H.R. 5382, now goes to the White House for President Bush's signature. It would put a clear legislative stamp on regulations already being put in place by the Federal Aviation Administration — and more significantly, allow paying passengers to fly on suborbital launch vehicles at their own risk."If I ever get to go into space - great. It's what I've dreamed of since I first knew what it was.
But if this means a step closer to my kids getting to go into space - even better.
(Note to Brainyboy and Tink: Just remember your old man, huh?)
Theatre Thursday
Week 29 - Merry Christmas
It's the most wonderful time of the year. Christmas.
1) Which holiday movie/special do you have to watch every single year?
"A Christmas Story" and "Santa Claus is Coming to Town"
2) Which holiday movie/special could you live without every year?
Sorry, I know Michael recommends it every year but I have no desire to see "Christmas Vacation". Our family tuned in a bit of "Home Alone 2" the other day, but when Kevin started attacking the burglars, I turned it off. That kind of slapstick/pain humor just turns me off in a major way.
3) Do you have any special traditions that you do while watching the holiday films? (i.e - decorating the tree, drinking eggnog, opening gifts)
Generally getting the kids to sit still long enough to watch something with them is tradition enough. But sometimes popcorn or hot chocolate is involved. We were decorating our tree while watching the aforementioned "Home Alone 2".
BONUS) Is there any holiday classic that you would like to see remade? If so, what is it, and who would you like to see play the parts?
I'd love to see "It's a Wonderful Life" with Tom Hanks as George Bailey and Patrick Stewart as Mr. Potter. And Selma Hayek as Mary. (Ok, that last one's just a personal fantasy...)
It's the most wonderful time of the year. Christmas.
1) Which holiday movie/special do you have to watch every single year?
"A Christmas Story" and "Santa Claus is Coming to Town"
2) Which holiday movie/special could you live without every year?
Sorry, I know Michael recommends it every year but I have no desire to see "Christmas Vacation". Our family tuned in a bit of "Home Alone 2" the other day, but when Kevin started attacking the burglars, I turned it off. That kind of slapstick/pain humor just turns me off in a major way.
3) Do you have any special traditions that you do while watching the holiday films? (i.e - decorating the tree, drinking eggnog, opening gifts)
Generally getting the kids to sit still long enough to watch something with them is tradition enough. But sometimes popcorn or hot chocolate is involved. We were decorating our tree while watching the aforementioned "Home Alone 2".
BONUS) Is there any holiday classic that you would like to see remade? If so, what is it, and who would you like to see play the parts?
I'd love to see "It's a Wonderful Life" with Tom Hanks as George Bailey and Patrick Stewart as Mr. Potter. And Selma Hayek as Mary. (Ok, that last one's just a personal fantasy...)
The Working Life - Part II
The other success I had today (well, now it's yesterday) is I finally got our website tracking to work.
It's fairly important in the web business to know how much traffic your sites are receiving. Now it's common for bloggers to be fairly paranoid about how much site traffic they get - me especially - but in the internet business world it can be crucial, especially when your job depends on putting out a popular and well-designed product for the world.
One of the best indicators is your traffic levels. I use a product called Webtrends, which is pretty much the industry standard for this sort of thing. It reads the log files that are created and added to during every user session on our sites, and assembles them into easily interpreted reports for the huddled masses, like me. Not only does it catch the basics like hits, page views and user sessions, it also detects trends in traffic through the site, dead ends, bad forms, countries of origin and a hundred other things.
My copy of Webtrends quit working in June, and I've been futzing over it ever since.
You know, the whole deal - hood up, parts all over the ground, my hands covered in grease. I even thought about wearing overalls to work but it clashed with the dress code.
The problem, as far as I could figure out, was I would set up all the paramaters and START the report.. It would chug along for a few moments, then just stop. Just stop. No helpful error messages, no nothing.
So yesterday I found an error reporting section of the application I hadn't noticed before, examined it and found out that it was unable to create the report files on the network drive I'd specified. The network drive it had always been able to create them on. A drive I have full access to, being that it's our Intranet drive and I'm responsible for it. Apparently there were some changes made on the drive by our IS department, and the rights were altered slightly.
Okeedokee. One little change....
I switched the destination drive from the network to my PC's hard drive - and if I don't have access to it, I'm in deeper trouble than I thought...
But lo and hebold, it's chugging along swimmingly. Huzzah!!
Wait.
Did I say June...? I have six months of tracking to catch up on. For 32 websites.
Crap. Wait, was that another email?
It's fairly important in the web business to know how much traffic your sites are receiving. Now it's common for bloggers to be fairly paranoid about how much site traffic they get - me especially - but in the internet business world it can be crucial, especially when your job depends on putting out a popular and well-designed product for the world.
One of the best indicators is your traffic levels. I use a product called Webtrends, which is pretty much the industry standard for this sort of thing. It reads the log files that are created and added to during every user session on our sites, and assembles them into easily interpreted reports for the huddled masses, like me. Not only does it catch the basics like hits, page views and user sessions, it also detects trends in traffic through the site, dead ends, bad forms, countries of origin and a hundred other things.
My copy of Webtrends quit working in June, and I've been futzing over it ever since.
You know, the whole deal - hood up, parts all over the ground, my hands covered in grease. I even thought about wearing overalls to work but it clashed with the dress code.
The problem, as far as I could figure out, was I would set up all the paramaters and START the report.. It would chug along for a few moments, then just stop. Just stop. No helpful error messages, no nothing.
So yesterday I found an error reporting section of the application I hadn't noticed before, examined it and found out that it was unable to create the report files on the network drive I'd specified. The network drive it had always been able to create them on. A drive I have full access to, being that it's our Intranet drive and I'm responsible for it. Apparently there were some changes made on the drive by our IS department, and the rights were altered slightly.
Okeedokee. One little change....
I switched the destination drive from the network to my PC's hard drive - and if I don't have access to it, I'm in deeper trouble than I thought...
But lo and hebold, it's chugging along swimmingly. Huzzah!!
Wait.
Did I say June...? I have six months of tracking to catch up on. For 32 websites.
Crap. Wait, was that another email?
Wednesday, December 08, 2004
The Working Life
I don't often blog about my job, and I don't really know why. Hatamaran and I stare at each other all day and toss jokes (and the occasional wadded up pieces of paper) at each other, so there's no end to the hilarity.
But a couple things noteworthy things happened today that are probably of no interest to anyone but myself...so I'm blogging them anyway.
I design and maintain websites for a major health system here in Knoxville. Hint: We own and operate five hospitals here and in the surrounding counties. Hint: We're not Baptist, St. Mary's or UT. You do the math.
Anyway, currently we have a promotion giving away free Holiday Survival Handbooks provided by our Behavioral Health division. There's an order/request form online that gets about 5-6 requests a day from people wanting us to send them a free copy - the majority of which come from in and around this area. All well and good.
I come in this morning, and overnight there are over 200 new requests for Handbooks. I check the email orders that are created, and the addresses are from all over the country. There are a few local ones, but most from everywhere else.
First of all I thought that maybe there was a national promotion, but a quick check with our Behavioral marketing reps nixed that idea. Then a closer look at the orders showed the forms were submitted every 3-4 minutes all night long - wee hours of the morning, even on the West Coast.
And they continued after I got to work this morning - one every 2 or 3 minutes. Each different from the other, each with a random name or address. My next immediate thought was a spam-bot, similar to those that send comment spam on blogs, but I can't figure out why....
The only reason would be to cause trouble, since there's no ad pitch, no marketing gimmick... It seems like someone wrote a program to submit names from a mailing list into the system. Something that I would think would require a bit of work, but hey, I'm the one with the real job.
So, along about 10:45 I pulled the webpage, replacing it with a "Down for Maintenance" message. The emails stopped in their tracks.
An hour or so later, I put it up again - the emails started right back up. So I pulled it again.
While this saves our servers from overuse, it keeps legit customers from requesting the books, which bugs me to no end. I'll probably try to put it up again closer to the end of the day and see what happens.
I just can't figure out why someone would want to do that, except to annoy me...
(looks around suspiciously...)
I'll write about the second thing later...
UPDATE (12/09/04): Well, I thought I had it beat. At 4:00 I reposted the page, and the emails started up again as if the bot was continuing to access the page continually. So I pulled it down, renamed all the files involved, changed the links on the referring pages, and reposted. This should stop it since, like all robots 'bots are stupid and only do what you tell them to do. In this case, go to this particular page and fill out the form with different names and addresses over and over.
So about 4:15 I posted the new page, and it stopped. That way legit customers could navigate their way to it and order, but the bot would by stymied. By the time I left at 4:30, nothing had come through.
This morning, (with human help, I suppose, or else it was designed for this kind of circumstance) it apparently found the new page and started submitting again. Much less often than before - only about 15 since 4:53 yesterday afternoon, and spaced apart very unevenly. I'll keep any eye on it and see what happens, but it's very annoying.
One of the entries was a local Knoxville address, and I'll have to make sure that order gets out...
But a couple things noteworthy things happened today that are probably of no interest to anyone but myself...so I'm blogging them anyway.
I design and maintain websites for a major health system here in Knoxville. Hint: We own and operate five hospitals here and in the surrounding counties. Hint: We're not Baptist, St. Mary's or UT. You do the math.
Anyway, currently we have a promotion giving away free Holiday Survival Handbooks provided by our Behavioral Health division. There's an order/request form online that gets about 5-6 requests a day from people wanting us to send them a free copy - the majority of which come from in and around this area. All well and good.
I come in this morning, and overnight there are over 200 new requests for Handbooks. I check the email orders that are created, and the addresses are from all over the country. There are a few local ones, but most from everywhere else.
First of all I thought that maybe there was a national promotion, but a quick check with our Behavioral marketing reps nixed that idea. Then a closer look at the orders showed the forms were submitted every 3-4 minutes all night long - wee hours of the morning, even on the West Coast.
And they continued after I got to work this morning - one every 2 or 3 minutes. Each different from the other, each with a random name or address. My next immediate thought was a spam-bot, similar to those that send comment spam on blogs, but I can't figure out why....
The only reason would be to cause trouble, since there's no ad pitch, no marketing gimmick... It seems like someone wrote a program to submit names from a mailing list into the system. Something that I would think would require a bit of work, but hey, I'm the one with the real job.
So, along about 10:45 I pulled the webpage, replacing it with a "Down for Maintenance" message. The emails stopped in their tracks.
An hour or so later, I put it up again - the emails started right back up. So I pulled it again.
While this saves our servers from overuse, it keeps legit customers from requesting the books, which bugs me to no end. I'll probably try to put it up again closer to the end of the day and see what happens.
I just can't figure out why someone would want to do that, except to annoy me...
(looks around suspiciously...)
I'll write about the second thing later...
UPDATE (12/09/04): Well, I thought I had it beat. At 4:00 I reposted the page, and the emails started up again as if the bot was continuing to access the page continually. So I pulled it down, renamed all the files involved, changed the links on the referring pages, and reposted. This should stop it since, like all robots 'bots are stupid and only do what you tell them to do. In this case, go to this particular page and fill out the form with different names and addresses over and over.
So about 4:15 I posted the new page, and it stopped. That way legit customers could navigate their way to it and order, but the bot would by stymied. By the time I left at 4:30, nothing had come through.
This morning, (with human help, I suppose, or else it was designed for this kind of circumstance) it apparently found the new page and started submitting again. Much less often than before - only about 15 since 4:53 yesterday afternoon, and spaced apart very unevenly. I'll keep any eye on it and see what happens, but it's very annoying.
One of the entries was a local Knoxville address, and I'll have to make sure that order gets out...
Tuesday, December 07, 2004
This Just In...
Joker takes charge of Kentucky's offense
In related news, Two-Face has taken charge of South Carolina's offense, Mr. Freeze has taken charge of California, and the Penguin remains in charge at Penn State.
Good night, and have a pleasant tomorrow...
In related news, Two-Face has taken charge of South Carolina's offense, Mr. Freeze has taken charge of California, and the Penguin remains in charge at Penn State.
Good night, and have a pleasant tomorrow...
Monday, December 06, 2004
Unfortunate Events
Driving around with BrainyBoy (v8.8) yesterday, I was listening to the Titans post-game show.
"Sigh..." I heard from the back seat.
"What's wrong?"
"Football's just a series of unfortunate events..."
Amen, brother. Amen.
"Sigh..." I heard from the back seat.
"What's wrong?"
"Football's just a series of unfortunate events..."
Amen, brother. Amen.
Friday, December 03, 2004
Tomorrow is Just 24 Hours Away...
I've finally gotten the opportunity the last couple of days to start watching (re-watching, rather) the 1st season of 24 I bought on DVD.
Warning: 1st, 2nd and 3rd season spoilers follow, but philosophical commentary abounds...
So far I've watched the first two episodes (12am-1am and 1am-2am) and the differences from the end of Season 3 are striking. Jack is much more flighty, and less driven than he is later (which of course, is understandable given the events of those three seasons.
I still think Teri is bland, bland, bland....with her dark, butch haircut and nonexpressive face it's hard to see Jack falling for her. Maybe the day before she'd just been the the hairstylist and been given a horrible style. Maybe she's normally got long, blonde hair :) After seeing Jack with Nina, Kate, the Mexican girl last year and this season another long blond, it's hard to see Teri was ever his type. But, bland and all, it was still nice seeing her again.
Tony is far from the stand-up guy he will be in later seasons. In truth, at this junction the producers probably weren't sure themselves who the real CTU mole was going to be and were making every agent act suspiciously.
Then there's the eventual turncoat, Nina. Sweetness and light personified, yet horribly ugly to come. It's going to be fun watching all the signals they put in to point her out as the traitor, that we missed the first time around.
Then there's Mason, Walsh, even a mention of Division Director Chappelle...
Ok, here's where the review stops really.
When I first saw Richard Walsh, Jack's superiour and obviously dear friend I thought, "Poor guy - you're going to be dead by the end of the next episode". When I saw George Mason being snarky to Jack, I thought, "Poor guy - you'll redeem yourself next year, catch radiation sickness and eventually sacrifice yourself by flying the plane with the nuke out to the desert." When Teri called Nina to ask for help in finding where Kim had run away too, I thought it ironic that in less than 24 hours, Nina would kill Teri.
Even the one mention of Division Boss Ryan Chappelle made me wonder what he'd think if he knew he'd eventually let himself be shot in the back of the neck by Jack.
At this point Tony has yet to even meet his future wife, Michelle, nor think about how we would be throwing his career and freedom away for her several years later.
It makes me wonder what we would do if we knew our fate. Or knew others'. If Gary Lundy's co-workers at the Knoxville News Sentinel could know a couple of weeks ago that he would be struck down by a fatal heart attack last Monday in the newsroom. What plans had Gary had? He had an 11-year-old son that he undoubtedly was looking forward to seeing grow up, graduate, marry, have children.... But now he can't.
Every person who ever gets in a car has dreams, hopes, plans... Most of us get out of our cars and keep on with our lives, but some people don't. Some people never leave their cars alive.
Obviously none of the jet passengers nor the World Trade Center or Pentagon workers ever thought that September 11, 2001 would be their last days on Earth. Some arrived for work or boarded the planes that morning thinking about what they were going to cook for dinner that night, or looking forward to their daughter's recital next week, or wondering if they had saved enough for retirement, or if they were going to make next month's mortgage payment.
Or if they'd forgotten to kiss their wife goodbye that morning, or regretted yelling at their kids to get ready for school, because I have to make the Manhatten bus RIGHT NOW!
If they all had known today would be their last day, would they have done things differently that morning? If they had known on September 4 that they would be killed the next week, would they have taken time to set some things right that they'd been putting off?
If that dad that's about to be hit by a drunk driver and thrown from their SUV to land in a ditch and slowly bleed to death had known they would die that day...would he have read to his daughter before bed the previous night instead of watching the end of the football game?
Foresight is a dangerous thing.
Cassandra of ancient Greek mythology was cursed to know the future, but unable to get anyone to believe her. Somehow I'd like to believe we know the future. One day each of us will no longer be here, and there will be no more chances.
Take the chances now.
UPDATE: After rereading this, I'm reminded of just such a chance that was taken on 24.
In the second season, George Mason is accidently exposed to a lethal dose of radiation. He knows that he has less than 24 hours to live, and is forced to deal with that foreknowledge. George locates his estranged son, who lives in LA, and invites him out to CTU headquarters to meet with him. The son is understandably resistant but George eventually is able to at least make his peace with his son.
This is just what I'm talking about. If he had not been able to resolve this conflict before he died, it would never have been cleared up and his son would've lived the rest of his life not knowing what his father had to say.
Chances...
Warning: 1st, 2nd and 3rd season spoilers follow, but philosophical commentary abounds...
So far I've watched the first two episodes (12am-1am and 1am-2am) and the differences from the end of Season 3 are striking. Jack is much more flighty, and less driven than he is later (which of course, is understandable given the events of those three seasons.
I still think Teri is bland, bland, bland....with her dark, butch haircut and nonexpressive face it's hard to see Jack falling for her. Maybe the day before she'd just been the the hairstylist and been given a horrible style. Maybe she's normally got long, blonde hair :) After seeing Jack with Nina, Kate, the Mexican girl last year and this season another long blond, it's hard to see Teri was ever his type. But, bland and all, it was still nice seeing her again.
Tony is far from the stand-up guy he will be in later seasons. In truth, at this junction the producers probably weren't sure themselves who the real CTU mole was going to be and were making every agent act suspiciously.
Then there's the eventual turncoat, Nina. Sweetness and light personified, yet horribly ugly to come. It's going to be fun watching all the signals they put in to point her out as the traitor, that we missed the first time around.
Then there's Mason, Walsh, even a mention of Division Director Chappelle...
Ok, here's where the review stops really.
When I first saw Richard Walsh, Jack's superiour and obviously dear friend I thought, "Poor guy - you're going to be dead by the end of the next episode". When I saw George Mason being snarky to Jack, I thought, "Poor guy - you'll redeem yourself next year, catch radiation sickness and eventually sacrifice yourself by flying the plane with the nuke out to the desert." When Teri called Nina to ask for help in finding where Kim had run away too, I thought it ironic that in less than 24 hours, Nina would kill Teri.
Even the one mention of Division Boss Ryan Chappelle made me wonder what he'd think if he knew he'd eventually let himself be shot in the back of the neck by Jack.
At this point Tony has yet to even meet his future wife, Michelle, nor think about how we would be throwing his career and freedom away for her several years later.
It makes me wonder what we would do if we knew our fate. Or knew others'. If Gary Lundy's co-workers at the Knoxville News Sentinel could know a couple of weeks ago that he would be struck down by a fatal heart attack last Monday in the newsroom. What plans had Gary had? He had an 11-year-old son that he undoubtedly was looking forward to seeing grow up, graduate, marry, have children.... But now he can't.
Every person who ever gets in a car has dreams, hopes, plans... Most of us get out of our cars and keep on with our lives, but some people don't. Some people never leave their cars alive.
Obviously none of the jet passengers nor the World Trade Center or Pentagon workers ever thought that September 11, 2001 would be their last days on Earth. Some arrived for work or boarded the planes that morning thinking about what they were going to cook for dinner that night, or looking forward to their daughter's recital next week, or wondering if they had saved enough for retirement, or if they were going to make next month's mortgage payment.
Or if they'd forgotten to kiss their wife goodbye that morning, or regretted yelling at their kids to get ready for school, because I have to make the Manhatten bus RIGHT NOW!
If they all had known today would be their last day, would they have done things differently that morning? If they had known on September 4 that they would be killed the next week, would they have taken time to set some things right that they'd been putting off?
If that dad that's about to be hit by a drunk driver and thrown from their SUV to land in a ditch and slowly bleed to death had known they would die that day...would he have read to his daughter before bed the previous night instead of watching the end of the football game?
Foresight is a dangerous thing.
Cassandra of ancient Greek mythology was cursed to know the future, but unable to get anyone to believe her. Somehow I'd like to believe we know the future. One day each of us will no longer be here, and there will be no more chances.
Take the chances now.
UPDATE: After rereading this, I'm reminded of just such a chance that was taken on 24.
In the second season, George Mason is accidently exposed to a lethal dose of radiation. He knows that he has less than 24 hours to live, and is forced to deal with that foreknowledge. George locates his estranged son, who lives in LA, and invites him out to CTU headquarters to meet with him. The son is understandably resistant but George eventually is able to at least make his peace with his son.
This is just what I'm talking about. If he had not been able to resolve this conflict before he died, it would never have been cleared up and his son would've lived the rest of his life not knowing what his father had to say.
Chances...
Thursday, December 02, 2004
Friday's Feast
Appetizer
Tell about a toy you remember from your childhood.
One of prized toy possessions, which I actually still have and my kids play with, is my Star Wars Death Star Space Station play set. Three stories tall with control panels, a trash compactor, tractor beam cutoff, turbolaser and retractable bridge plus an elevator made this the home of many galactic adventures...
Soup
If you could make one thing in the world absolutely free for everyone, what would it be?
My first thought would be to make every musical recording or composition available to anyone on the planet who wanted to listen to it. That would probably not be good to the pocketbooks of the people who wrote and/or recorded the music...but then, what could you possibly give away free that wouldn't hurt someone?
Of course, giving away freedom without the price we and they are paying for it now would be nice. I don't think many people would mind giving up that price.
Salad
Approximately how many times per day do you think about your significant other?
Well, since my wife and I work for the same company, work with many of the same people and even interact professionally from time to time I think about her more than most working husbands do in that respect. When not in a professional setting...I still think about her all the time.
Mostly wondering if she's going to notice I forgot to take out the garbage, or something...
Main Course
Name something you believe in 100%.
I believe 100% that you should never believe in anything 100%. Always leave room for the possible - even in religion, and especially in politics.
Dessert
List 3 things you did this year that you would consider a "good deed."
1) I agreed to teach Sunday School to the Senior High Youth at my church
2) I (hopefully) helped out a friend in a dark time in their life
3) I helped build a Habitat for Humanity house, and gained a new appreciation for the people who put up aluminum siding...
Wednesday, December 01, 2004
This Stinks...
Actually, it really, really stinks - just on general principles.
Mississippi fires Cutcliffe after 4-7 season
But what upsets me more is the attitude these days that coaches should be fired for one losing season.
Mississippi fires Cutcliffe after 4-7 season
"Mississippi coach David Cutcliffe was fired Wednesday after his first losing season in six years with the Rebels, a source close to the football program told The Associated Press."Cutcliffe was Tennessee's offensive coordinator for a number of years, culminating in our National Championship season of 1998. For that, as a former Vol coach, this upsets me.
But what upsets me more is the attitude these days that coaches should be fired for one losing season.
"Cutcliffe was 44-29 in six seasons at Ole Miss, 25-23 in the Southeastern Conference, and just a season removed from going 10-3 season and finishing tied for first in the SEC West with Eli Manning at quarterback."Which basically says you screw up once, and you're out.
"Cutcliffe was the only coach in school history to win at least seven games in his first five years."Nice going, Ole Miss. Hope those boosters are happy. Archie Manning....did you have a hand in this? I hope not.
Dan Aykroyd
A couple of weeks ago I mentioned that I'd love to ask actor Dan Aykroyd some questions about the choices he's made in his career.
Well, lo and behold here's a recent interview with him that addresses some of those very questions.
UPDATE: (12/14/04)
I never finished my thoughts on this post..
Aykroyd has always been a little different. Not just an actor, but an intellectual. I have a feeling if he hadn't gone into acting, he might actually be a little like Dr. Ray Stantz on Ghostbusters. Even now, he sponsors a paranormal/UFO nonprofit organization and website. Not only an intellectual, he's a producer, director, writer - one of those kind of Hollywood people not just content to put in their hours in front of the camera and retreat back to the trailer. Because of these ambitions, Aykroyd has to make compromises at times to get his projects out there and in production. Some of these compromises were, unfortunately, like Caddyshack 2. And probably the Ghostbuster cameo he made in Casper, though I'm not sure. I've always respected him as an actor and filmmaker, and I'm sorry that not enough of the established Hollywood elite believed that enough to give him the freedoms he needed for his art.
Well, lo and behold here's a recent interview with him that addresses some of those very questions.
"Question: How picky are you? Good comedies are hard to come by and you've been doing this for so long now. Are you very selective?
Aykroyd: Obviously I'm not too picky if I got into Caddyshack 2 and a few other clunkers out there. But you have to look at how these things come to you. An executive calls you up and says he has your script on the table and he'll produce it for you if you play this part n Caddyshack 2. So if you want to see your script made you have to make certain deals."
UPDATE: (12/14/04)
I never finished my thoughts on this post..
Aykroyd has always been a little different. Not just an actor, but an intellectual. I have a feeling if he hadn't gone into acting, he might actually be a little like Dr. Ray Stantz on Ghostbusters. Even now, he sponsors a paranormal/UFO nonprofit organization and website. Not only an intellectual, he's a producer, director, writer - one of those kind of Hollywood people not just content to put in their hours in front of the camera and retreat back to the trailer. Because of these ambitions, Aykroyd has to make compromises at times to get his projects out there and in production. Some of these compromises were, unfortunately, like Caddyshack 2. And probably the Ghostbuster cameo he made in Casper, though I'm not sure. I've always respected him as an actor and filmmaker, and I'm sorry that not enough of the established Hollywood elite believed that enough to give him the freedoms he needed for his art.
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