Monday, January 06, 2003

What the F . . . I was walking out of CompUSA (actually, we call it inCompUSA in my house) when I walked past the pet store and saw a Chevy Suburban with a bumper sticker that said "Caution Show Dogs." Is that supposed to be like "Baby Onboard"? Am I supposed to give that car preferential treatment? I mean, should I be more careful to avoid getting into an accident with that car than say, a car carrying two elderly people on pensions or a car full of teenagers or something? I mean what the hell is that all about? Another thing I've noticed is with the recent snow storms, most of the accidents have involved higher priced cars. I guess if you buy a Mercedes or a Land Rover or a Lexus you expect for that money that you are exempt from the laws of physics. 11:49:22 PM    Go Ahead, make my day  []

Resistance is Irrelevant   I was looking at the box office grosses for the past two weeks and I noticed that such groundbreaking movies like The Hot Chick and Two Weeks Notice grossed as much or more than Star Trek Nemesis. Maid in Manhattan brought in more than twice as much as the Next Gen cast. Attack of the Clones, which has been out ten weeks as opposed to four for Nemesis has brought in about ten times as much cash.   Could it be that Rick Berman has succeeded in doing what the Borg, the Dominion and the Romulans have failed to do? The Great Bird of the Galaxy must be spinning. 11:43:28 PM    Go Ahead, make my day  []

Monday Mission 3.1 PromoGuy's Monday Mission 3.1 1. What is one of your favorite things to wear? Right now, with the weather the way it’s been, my goose down parka. 2. Did you get any "dud" gifts for the holidays? Will you return them? All of the gifts I got were great. None of them were duds and I’m keeping them all. 3. Let's do a few "Best of 2002" thoughts. What was the best movie of 2002? Why did you pick that one? Insomnia. I thought that Al Pacino gave an absolutely incredible performance, as did Robin Williams. They both raised what would have been an ordinary movie above its script and plot. 4. What world event of 2002 made an impact on you? Although the catastrophe didn’t happen in 2002, at the end of last year I visited the site of the World Trade Center for the first time since the events of 9/11. I used to work downtown within a few blocks of the WTC and went in and out (and up) more times than I can remember. I still can’t fathom the feeling. Rather than making 9/11 more real it made it more difficult to comprehend. I remember standing in front of the huge hole in the ground and trying to pick out where different buildings and stores used to be. I remember reading the list of all the innocent murder victims. It seemed that a fine gray coating was still ingrained in everything downtown. 5. What personal event of 2002 was the most memorable? I have three that are tied for first: horseback riding with my wife into the crater of Haleakela, scuba diving at Molokini and hearing the humpback whales’ song underwater, and actually seeing the humpback whales playing on the surface from the Pacific Whale Center’s boat, all in Maui. 6. Is there anything in 2002 (decisions, relationships, purchases, etc.) that, looking back, you would have done differently? I would have definitely replaced my car much earlier instead of waiting for it to die. It was definitely trying to tell me something for some time. 7. Shine up your magic crystal ball and look into the future. What do you think will happen in your life in 2003? Or, what would you like to happen in 2003? I would like to change my career, but I don’t quite know exactly what I want to do, other than to get the hell out of my "chosen profession." I think I’d like to do something involving the production of science documentaries. I’m hoping that my wife’s Broadway play gets off the ground and is a success. BONUS: Was it somethin' I said or somethin' I did, did my words not come out right? Yes.   Today's Comment Question: What are some of your favorite song lyrics at the moment? BLUE HORIZON by Graham Parker ©2001   We'd follow the sound Of the dirt tracking bikes Into the sunset Into the sunset Or the wings of a painted lady butterfly That escaped the net Escaped the net Or the cry of a long lost bird That defied identification You could hear it from the air raid shelter With the walls soaked to saturation   Chorus: These dreams will never sleep That wake me from my adult slumber They have no schedule to keep And they drive me onward Into the blue horizon   I'd hit the ground runnin' I'd hit the ground hard Then jump up alert Jump up alert My mother and father Watched over me And made sure I never really got hurt Made sure I was never stifled or bound That's what everybody needs in their background That's the rock you build your mountain on And it can never never fall down   (Chorus)   My friends all grew up And some went out All around the world And back again too Some of them stayed put In their hometown Well there's worse things that you can do Some of them married Couple of them died Some of them just go along for the ride Can't claim to understand What it all means Probably nothing But that's not how it seems   (Chorus)   It’s from the album, Deepcut to Nowhere, an absolutely great recording that just can’t get any airplay. Go get it at http://punkhart.com/gparker/.   11:41:46 PM    Go Ahead, make my day  []