The Cheese Stands Alone

The "papers please" incident: I don't see anything wrong with what happened...the cop acted properly, as far as I've been able to see. The guy in question acted like an ass. The Passion movie: enough, already. Allegations of anti-christian bias in the media: largely bull. Allegations of anti-semitism in the Passion movie: entirely bull. Gay marriage: fine by me. Two men or two women getting "married" does not impinge upon or deny a single right of mine. Am I the only one who doesn't think that gay marriage will cause the country to erupt in flames?

Sigh.

You've Gotta See The Bay-Bee!

A huge congratulations to my friends Antony & Tracie, who are now the very proud parents of a healthy, handsome baby boy! The baby "checked in" Wednesday evening...and Mom, Dad, and Baby are all doing great. Go say hi and see how cute he is!

Practice Makes Perfect

The Beautiful Wife and I enjoyed the TV show "The Practice" way back when - late 90s, primarily, when it was a relatively decent show. She adored Dylan McDermott, and we both liked the legal maneuvering and drama. The sex & love plotlines left us bored, and eventually destroyed our enjoyment of the show as it turned into a lame, boring, primetime soap-like creature. But then along came James. James Spader, to be precise. His character on the show, Alan Shore, coupled with the mercy firing of the three characters (Bobby and his two girlfriends) responsible for the show's slump, have turned "The Practice" into one of a very few "appointment TV" shows that we enjoy.

And speaking of James Spader...if Christopher Walken and Jeff Goldblum had a love-child, he's it. And I mean that as a compliment. Appearance, mannerisms, voice, and such.

Signs, Signs

Awww...how sweet. I'm sure some of you remember Natealicious, one of my co-workers and good buddies. He was kind enough to think of me earlier this evening and made a sign for me! Thanks, Nate! Hey - is it just me, or is it getting a bit warm in here...? Heh.

Oh, and of course I made one, too (back in November). Still makes me laugh.

Old Time Religion

You can't turn on a TV or a radio this week without being bombarded by Religion. Much of the talk, of course, has been sparked by the new Gibson movie, but this media spectacle has spilled over into many other areas: a special report on NBC "Dateline" tomorrow...preachers, pastors, rabbis on Fox News, MSNBC, and such...Jesus on the cover of magazines...the anti-gay lobbyists invoking religion into the current debate over marriage...

So at the risk of offending some of my regular readers, but perhaps providing a brief respite for others, a few links to enjoy...

I Want It

Drool. This is sooooo cool looking...a full-fledged computer in the palm of your hand. No "pocket" OS - the real thing. As much as I love my Pocket PC (Maestro), this FlipStart stole my heart the moment that I saw it. No word yet on price...(gulp)...any guesses?

Blog Is Blog

I don't know how I missed this site for so long...who says we Objectivists (like me!) don't have a sense of humor? Heh. Poke around the whole site; lots of interesting stuff. Even postcards! But the really fun part is the Ayn Rand Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval:

"How often has the following happened to you: You're out for a drive, enjoying your brand-new car complete with a new stereo, GPS unit, halogen headlights, and stealth bra for minimizing the radar shadow...and suddenly the gas tank reads more than full? Or maybe you're trying to clean out your fridge with a bucket of soapy water...and you look down to find the bucket turning itself inside-out? And what about buying a VCR, taking it home and trying to program the clock...only to find that the time is displayed in Roman numerals...and it's going backwards?

There's only one solution for all of these problems: rationality. And there's only one sign that rationality can be found inside: The Ayn Rand Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval! You'll never worry again about idiotic design flaws caused by weak-sister liberals trying to avoid the evidence of their senses. Non-causality in your household products will be a thing of the past. And you'll know that every A is A!"

Good Riddance

Thank goodness. Tonight is the last episode of "Sluts In The City." The Beautiful Wife loves that show, but in my eyes, it's just horrible. I've seen snippets of about three or four episodes, and it's just terrible. It's on my "Top 10 Reasons For American Cultural Decline and Declining Morals" list. My answer to this question is: "Everyone." UPDATE: And am I the only one who thinks that Sarah Jessica Parker is...um...somewhat unattractive (to put it mildly)? I'm sure she's a nice person and such - hell, she's married to one of the coolest guys ever to grace the silver screen, Ferris, after all, and he must find something redeeming about her, right? - but the words "sex" and "Sarah Jessica Parker" just don't go together. Blech.

Bad Joke Sunday

Via Charles, I found Skip, who is celebrating Bad Joke Sunday. Here's my two cents...

What do you call a cow with no legs? GROUND BEEF!
What do you call a cow that has just given birth? DECAFFEINATED!

Go ahead -- post your own bad jokes. Maybe we can turn Sundays into Bad Joke Free-For-Falls every week! Oh, and speaking of humor, Allison has an update of sorts on her entry from long ago that nearly collapsed my lungs.

You Dropped A Bomb On Me

Several years ago, I happened to catch the movie "Above & Beyond" on Turner Classic Movies. It was a dramatization of the project to develop the atomic bomb and use it on Japan to end WWII. The story centered on (then) Lt Col Paul Tibbets, the man who was chosen to lead the mission. After the movie, I did a bit of googling and discovered that Tibbets is alive & well, and still making occasional personal appearances. I thought it fascinating, and posted a FPP on MetaFilter, which elicited quite a bit of discussion. Contrary to the view of some MeFi'ers (and probably the general public), Tibbets' role was not merely to "fly straight and push a button." I read the 1977 book "Enola Gay" a few weeks ago, and learned that the movie was largely factual. Tibbets was resonsible for much more than simply piloting the plane...

One Day At A Time

Good heavens...the previous post got me searching for more information about "One Day At A Time." I didn't realize until reading a brief history of the show that it lasted nine years. So, 1 day at a time...times 9 years...equals 3,285 days total. 205 episodes. So why the heck isn't it shown somewhere on some channel? I think TV Land (Nick @ Nite) would do well to show "One Day..." instead of the crapfest "Roseanne" or the snorefest "Cosby."

Retro Quiz

Three things came to mind as I scanned the questions of the 80s quiz over at Michele's place...

First, Schneider was the Superintendent, not just the "plumber". His catchphrase, if memory serves, was "...and please always remember, and never forget..." Good character, Schneider, played by a cool actor. And call me crazy, but I always thought that Bonnie Franklin was pretty hot. Loved the show--until they introduced Miss Misses MIZ Romano's latest romantic interest who had that goofy son (Alex). And that lame dentist (?) who married Barbara. And the 23rd time that Julie ran away. Her true love, earlier in the series, was played by Richard Masur (pictured, left), who was absolutely brilliant in the role of Georgie in the wacky madcap classic film "Scavenger Hunt." You have seen it, I trust...?

Second, that BS question about the first video on MTV is insulting...everyone knows that one. The quiz creator should have asked who the SECOND artist played on MTV was! UPDATE: Um...I think it was Pat Benatar. I stopped watching music videos circa 1984/5, when the video for Joe Jackson's "Steppin' Out" completely disagreed with my mental imagery of the song. I am now convinced that music videos are, quite simply, wrong. Maybe even evil. MTV is the only channel that is banned in my house. The kids sneak a peek every now and then. I tell them that music videos will destroy their brain cells nearly as fast as alcohol and drugs.

And I heard Kajagoogoo on the radio today--very cool. Too Shy, indeed.

No Comment

This is strange...I got an e-mail from from someone who is trying to leave a comment on my site. Each time that he tries to do so, he receives the following error message:

Your comment submission failed for the following reasons: Your comment could not be submitted due to your freaking stupidity. Please correct the error in the form below, then press Post to post your comment.

Wha...? Anyone have a clue about this?