We finally cut Bricey's hair.

He looks like a different child - check out his photos

He is still wild , but we cant blame his hair anymore.

His Auntie Rita said he looks intelligent and sophisticated  - how can she work that out from a photo?? She must be magic.

[listening to: Blind - Talking Heads ]
6:57:34 PM    comment []  trackback []  G!   • Family

Can't resist

You Are A: Parakeet!

This popular bird is kept as a pet in homes all over the world. Originating from Australia, parakeets like warm weather and lots of seeds and fruit. They are also known for being messy and quite loud! But you cannot look at one without falling in love.

You were almost a: Kitten or a Bear Cub
You are least like a: Chipmunk or a DucklingTake the Cute Animal Test!

[listening to: Life During Wartime [Live] - Talking Heads ]
9:28:28 PM    comment []  trackback []  G!   • Geek

I had forgetten all about Orkut recently, until a flurry of emails from folks in Portugal made me log back into the system.

I hadn't posted my stats since February 2005, so lets look and see how the community has grown:

I am now connected to 9,498,656 people through 106 friends, with 18 fans & 15 scraps.Phew, that's a lot of connections.

Since I last logged on, Google has integrated the GMail user id to be the logon. this Google ID is becoming to be pervasive - kinda like Google's passport, but obviously much less evil.

[listening to: (Nothing But) Flowers - Talking Heads ]
3:09:16 PM    comment []  trackback []  G!   • Geek

Got this email today. The boys from The Chaser are back on the TV.

The alert that keeps you alarmed.

The ABC sacked all staff in the News and Current Affairs Department today after announcing it would outsource its entire news service to the team from The Chaser. The ABC has commissioned the team behind the Logie winning comedy series CNNNN and The Chaser Decides to produce weekly 4 minute "Chaser News Alerts", commencing Thursday September 22.

Departing Director of ABC TV Sandra Levy refused to interrupt normal ABC broadcasting to take the announcement live.

Chaser News Alerts will replace The 7:30 Report, Four Corners, Media Watch, Foreign Correspondent and Lateline and will be broadcast on ABC2 and ABC Online. The Insiders will continue, however, as The Chaser team doesn't work weekends.

The Alerts will feature Andrew Hansen, Chas Licciardello, Dominic Knight and Julian Morrow, with cameo appearances from Senator Bill Heffernan, Dannii Minogue and Princess Diana (via psychic).

Since it was founded as a newspaper in 1999, The Chaser has been consistently rated Australia's second funniest current affairs team after Today Tonight. The Chaser is now a satirical media empire that rivals Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation in all fields except power, influence, popularity and profitability. Although the team has recycled material in most media including TV, radio, online and books, this is the team's first foray into digital and online broadcasting.

Ten weekly episodes of Chaser News Alert will be produced and broadcast every Thursday (commencing 22 September) at 7.55pm on free to air, digital ABC2 and 24 hours 7 days a week at http://abc.net.au/chaser.

[listening to: Don't Change - INXS ]
9:35:11 PM    comment []  trackback []  G!   • TV

We've been watching the fourth series of Curb Your Enthusiasm, which I got on DVD recently. 

I've been a big fan of this show, despite the attempts of the local Free To Air network to destroy it.  It's one of the smartest, most entertaining shows out there.

The running theme in this season has Larry David playing a lead role in "The Producers" on Broadway.

This is what HBO says about the series - Larry David lives a charmed life-an understanding wife, famous friends, a supportive manager and an angelic singing voice so what's his problem? See Larry buy medical marijuana, take a hooker to a baseball game, steal a golf club from a corpse, ruin Ben Stiller's birthday party, attempt to cash in on his tenth anniversary present with Gina Gershon and trip the light fantastic in The Producers with Mel Brooks and David Schwimmer.

Hilarious!

I have no idea when it will be shown here in Australia. But when it finally is on, do yourself a favour and check it.

The next series starts in the states this week. Cant wait to see it soon.

[listening to: Mystify - INXS ]
9:17:13 PM    comment []  trackback []  G!   • TV

http://www.talklikeapirate.com/

[listening to: Melancholy Serenade - Jackie Gleason ]
9:35:52 AM    comment []  trackback []  G!   • Random

The kids have decided we're going to play every mini golf course we can find over the course of the next few months. There are a few of them in Sydney, so we should have a bit of fun in this 1st annual event.

Today we went down to Narrabeen to play at Pirate Mini Golf. We took the Shipwreck course. It;s a par 36 course.

We had a good round. Emma scored 4 hole's in one. Bill and I got one each (but I came close a few times) I lost a ball and had to go get another one. (that's why I had 3 6 holers in a row)

The scorecard for the round shows the result - a tie between Bill and Me, and Emma wasn't too far behind!

Pirate Mini Golf : Shipwreck : 18 09 2005
	first nine										second nine
Player / Hole	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	first 9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	second 9	total
Billy	3	6	6	2	3	2	6	3	4	35	4	4	3	2	1	3	2	4	3	26	61
Brice	4	6	4	4	5	4	6	3	4	40	5	4	3	6	6	4	4	5	3	40	80
Emma	3	6	4	6	1	4	1	4	4	33	3	4	5	6	1	3	1	4	3	30	63
Frank	2	6	3	3	3	3	6	6	6	38	2	1	2	2	2	3	3	6	2	23	61

[listening to: Suicide Blonde - INXS ]
6:18:10 PM    comment []  trackback []  G!   • Family

Since the footy season is now over (for me and my team anyways), time to refresh the DVD Collection.

I got these from Amazon during the week:

• Curb Your Enthusiasm - The Complete Fourth Season
• Dead Like Me - The Complete First Season
• Dead Like Me - The Complete Second Season
• Firefly - The Complete Series
• Lost - The Complete First Season
• Sin City

Yup, it's a lot of TV series. I find this is a better way to watch tv shows anyway. The Aussie TV networks are run by total knobs, who have destroyed tv shows in the past, such as Arrested Development, Firefly, West Wing. I could go on...

So we just don't watch network tv much these days - apart from live sport.  We either record stuff on our Foxtel iQ for watching later, or just buy the series on DVD. (and yes, there are other options to consume this stuff too.)

It's all about time-shifted TV . Consume when required, not being dictated to the requirements of an outdated business model.

That's the way I like it.

[listening to: Holiday for Strings - The Voices of Walter Schumann ]
2:32:09 PM    comment []  trackback []  G!   • TV

I've gone from being excited, to just being numb.

St Kilda	9.11 (65)	Gehrig 4, Riewoldt 2, Dal Santo, Hayes, Montagna
Sydney	15.6 (96)	Hall 4, Schneider 3, O'Keefe, O'Loughlin, Williams 2, Buchanan, Davis

The Swans dominated early and led by 4 pts at half-time, but the Saints hit the front to lead by 7 pts before the final qtr, where the Swans then booted 7 goals to nothing to steal the match

[listening to: Burn to Shine - Ben Lee ]
11:21:17 PM    comment []  trackback []  G!   • My Hobbies

I'm excited.

It's less than an hour to the start of the Preliminary Final at the MCG between StKilda and the Sydney Swans. The Saints win this and they are into the Grand Final - 1st time since 1997. They lose and their season is over.

I've promised Billy we will go down to the Melbourne to see the big game next week if the Saints make it. It will be my first time to a Grand Final. Hmm, I'm getting ahead of myself. Let's take this one game at a time...

[listening to: Music for the Young & Foolish - Ben Lee ]
7:02:00 PM    comment []  trackback []  G!   • My Hobbies

Haven't dont a quiz in days. This one really appeals

Your Inner Child Is Surprised

You see many things through the eyes of a child. Meaning, you're rarely cynical or jaded. You cherish all of the details in life. Easily fascinated, you enjoy experiencing new things.

[listening to: Oink, Oink Mambo - Chuy Reyes & His Hollywood Mocambo Orchestra ]
6:25:16 PM    comment []  trackback []  G!   • Random

The latest news from Michael Moore. What a terrific result

---

Friends,

Last week I closed my New York production office and sent my staff down to New Orleans to set up our own relief effort. I asked all of you to help me by sending food, materials and cash to the emergency relief center we helped set up on the shores of Lake Pontchartrain with the Veterans for Peace. We did this when the government was doing nothing and the Red Cross was still trying to get it together. Every day, every minute was critical. People were dying, poor people, black people, left like so much trash in the street. I wanted to find a way to get aid in there immediately.

I hooked up with the Vietnam veterans and Iraqi war vets (Veterans for Peace) who were organizing a guerilla, grass-roots relief effort. They were the same group that had set up Cindy Sheehan's camp in Crawford and now they had moved Camp Casey to Louisiana.

I have good news and horrible news to report. First, your response to my appeal letter was overwhelming. Within a few days, a half-million dollars was sent in through my website to fund our relief effort. This money was immediately used to buy generators, food, water, a mobile medical van, tents, satellite phones, etc.

Others of you began shipping supplies to our encampment. People in communities all over the country started organizing truck caravans to us in Louisiana. Twenty-two trucks from southern California alone have already arrived. A semi-truck from Chicago delivered ten tons of food. A group of friends in New Jersey got two 24 foot trucks, got their community to load them up with goods, and arrived in Covington tonight. Fifteen iMacs are inbound from California. One man gave us his pick-up truck and another donated truck is en route from Houston.

Your response to my appeal has been nothing short of miraculous. And it has saved many, many lives.

A number of you decided to just get in your cars and drive to our camp to volunteer to help. We now have had 150 volunteers here doing the work that needs to be done. Last night they unloaded twenty tons of food from a tractor trailer in under two hours. Each day more volunteers arrive. Everyone is sleeping on the ground or in tents. It is a remarkable sight. Thank you, all of you, for responding. I will never forget this outpouring of generosity to those forgotten by our own government.

My staff and the vets spend their 18-hour days delivering food and water throughout the city of New Orleans and the surrounding areas. What they have seen is appalling. I have asked them to post their daily diaries on my website (www.michaelmoore.com) along with accompanying photos and video so you can learn what is really going on. What the media is showing you is NOT the whole story. It is much, much worse and there is still little being done to bring help to those who need it.

Our group has visited many outlying towns and villages in Mississippi and Louisiana, places the Red Cross and FEMA haven't visited in over a week. Often our volunteers are the first relief any of these people have seen. They have no food, water or electricity. People die every day. There are no TV cameras recording this. They have started to report the spin and PR put out by the White House, the happy news that often isn't true ("Everyone gets 2,000 dollars!").

The truth is that there are dead bodies everywhere and no one is picking them up. My crew reports that in most areas there is no FEMA presence, and very little Red Cross. It's been over two weeks since the hurricane and there is simply not much being done. At this point, would you call this situation incompetence or a purposeful refusal to get real help down there?

That's why we decided not to wait. And we are so grateful to all of you who have joined us. The Veterans for Peace and my staff aren't leaving (and that's why we are hoping those of you who can't get to Covington will make it to the Veterans for Peace co-sponsored anti-war demonstration in DC on September 24: www.unitedforpeace.org.)

If you want to help, here's what we need in Covington right now:

Cleaning Supplies (glass cleaner, bleach, disinfectant, etc.)
Aspirin and other basic over the counter drugs.
Bottled Water
Canned Goods
Hygiene Supplies
Baby Supplies - Baby Food Formula, diapers #4, #5, Wipes, Pedialyte
Sterile Gloves
Batteries - All kinds, from AA to watch and hearing aid batteries.
Volunteers with trucks and cars
Self contained kitchens with generators, utensils, workers

Consider sending supplies in reusable containers. List the contents on the outside of the package so the folks in the warehouse can easily sort the items.

Clothes are not needed. If you go, keep in mind that you MUST be self-sufficient. Bring a tent and a sleeping bag. People are driving to Covington from across the country and often have extra room in their cars for you or for an extra box of supplies. For more information, go to the Veterans for Peace message board: www.vfproadtrips.org/katrina/.

Send supplies via UPS to:
Veterans for Peace
Omni Storage
74145 Hwy. 25
Covington LA

Thanks again for funding and supporting our relief efforts. It has been a bright spot in this otherwise shameful month.

Yours,
Michael Moore
mike@michaelmoore.com
www.michaelmoore.com

[listening to: This Time - INXS ]
5:00:49 PM    comment []  trackback []  G!   • My Interests

It's that time again.......

Your Superhero Profile

Your Superhero Name is The Dark Angel Your Superpower is Vampirism Your Weakness is Glitter Your Weapon is Your Celestial Boomerang Your Mode of Transportation is Roller Skates

[listening to: Golden Playpen - INXS ]
8:35:26 PM    comment []  trackback []  G!   • Geek

Last Night, we sat down and watched a docu-drama called Oil Storm. It has it's own entry in Wikipedia

Oil Storm was a docudrama by James Erskine and Caroline Levy portraying a future oil-shortage crisis in the United States. It originally aired on FX Networks on June 5, 2005, at 8 PM EST. The program was an attempt to depict what would happen if the highly oil-dependent country was suddenly faced with gasoline costing upwards of $7 and 8 per gallon (as opposed to the national average of around $2 per gallon when the show first aired).

The crisis arises from a hurricane wiping out an important pipeline in Louisiana, a tanker collision closing a busy port, terrorist attacks and tension with Saudi Arabia over the oil trade, and other fictional events. The program followed several fictional people, being portrayed by actors, in various situations (a couple that owned a mom-and-pop gas station, stock market and oil analysts, government officials, etc.), and includes a substantial amount of human drama.

What's freaky is that the events of Hurricane Katrina, its economic impact and the ensuing price increases nearly parallels the events in the movie.  I guess all the facts were out there for ages, and it didn't take a rocket scientist to put it all together.

BTW - Some dude has posted a promo of the show that was running locally.

[listening to: Love Is (What I Say) - INXS ]
9:42:30 AM    comment []  trackback []  G!   • TV

I've been playing at the storTroopers site and have designed 2 little friends

Classic		Fasionista

I can't decide who to choose to be my blog buddie.

[listening to: Fair Weather Ahead - INXS ]
8:18:46 PM    comment []  trackback []  G!   • Geek • Random

I've been playing with Plazes recently. I've downloaded the launcher, created my Plazes Profile and have discovered 2 Plazes so far - Home & Work. 

You can even see my WhereIs Page

Help build up the Australian plazes - Read about it, signup and add me as a friend.

[listening to: Silent Night [#][*] - INXS ]
6:45:55 PM    comment []  trackback []  G!   • Geek

The latest from Michael Moore.

---

From: Michael Moore [mailto:maillist@michaelmoore.com]
Sent: Sunday, 11 September 2005 5:37 PM
To: Frank Arrigo
Subject: A Letter to All Who Voted for George W. Bush from Michael Moore

 

To All My Fellow Americans Who Voted for George W. Bush:

On this, the fourth anniversary of 9/11, I'm just curious, how does it feel?

How does it feel to know that the man you elected to lead us after we were attacked went ahead and put a guy in charge of FEMA whose main qualification was that he ran horse shows?

That's right. Horse shows.

I really want to know -- and I ask you this in all sincerity and with all due respect -- how do you feel about the utter contempt Mr. Bush has shown for your safety? C'mon, give me just a moment of honesty. Don't start ranting on about how this disaster in New Orleans was the fault of one of the poorest cities in America. Put aside your hatred of Democrats and liberals and anyone with the last name of Clinton. Just look me in the eye and tell me our President did the right thing after 9/11 by naming a horse show runner as the top man to protect us in case of an emergency or catastrophe.

I want you to put aside your self-affixed label of Republican/conservative/born-again/capitalist/ditto-head/right-winger and just talk to me as an American, on the common ground we both call America.

Are we safer now than before 9/11? When you learn that behind the horse show runner, the #2 and #3 men in charge of emergency preparedness have zero experience in emergency preparedness, do you think we are safer?

When you look at Michael Chertoff, the head of Homeland Security, a man with little experience in national security, do you feel secure?

When men who never served in the military and have never seen young men die in battle send our young people off to war, do you think they know how to conduct a war? Do they know what it means to have your legs blown off for a threat that was never there?

Do you really believe that turning over important government services to private corporations has resulted in better services for the people?

Why do you hate our federal government so much? You have voted for politicians for the past 25 years whose main goal has been to de-fund the federal government. Do you think that cutting federal programs like FEMA and the Army Corps of Engineers has been good or bad for America? GOOD OR BAD?

With the nation's debt at an all-time high, do you think tax cuts for the rich are still a good idea? Will you give yours back so hundreds of thousands of homeless in New Orleans can have a home?

Do you believe in Jesus? Really? Didn't he say that we would be judged by how we treat the least among us? Hurricane Katrina came in and blew off the facade that we were a nation with liberty and justice for all. The wind howled and the water rose and what was revealed was that the poor in America shall be left to suffer and die while the President of the United States fiddles and tells them to eat cake.

That's not a joke. The day the hurricane hit and the levees broke, Mr. Bush, John McCain and their rich pals were stuffing themselves with cake. A full day after the levees broke (the same levees whose repair funding he had cut), Mr. Bush was playing a guitar some country singer gave him. All this while New Orleans sank under water.

It would take ANOTHER day before the President would do a flyover in his jumbo jet, peeking out the widow at the misery 2500 feet below him as he flew back to his second home in DC. It would then be TWO MORE DAYS before a trickle of federal aid and troops would arrive. This was no seven minutes in a sitting trance while children read "My Pet Goat" to him. This was FOUR DAYS of doing nothing other than saying "Brownie (FEMA director Michael Brown), you're doing a heck of a job!"

My Republican friends, does it bother you that we are the laughing stock of the world?

And on this sacred day of remembrance, do you think we honor or shame those who died on 9/11/01? If we learned nothing and find ourselves today every bit as vulnerable and unprepared as we were on that bright sunny morning, then did the 3,000 die in vain?

Our vulnerability is not just about dealing with terrorists or natural disasters. We are vulnerable and unsafe because we allow one in eight Americans to live in horrible poverty. We accept an education system where one in six children never graduate and most of those who do can't string a coherent sentence together. The middle class can't pay the mortgage or the hospital bills and 45 million have no health coverage whatsoever.

Are we safe? Do you really feel safe? You can only move so far out and build so many gated communities before the fruit of what you've sown will be crashing through your walls and demanding retribution. Do you really want to wait until that happens? Or is it your hope that if they are left alone long enough to soil themselves and shoot themselves and drown in the filth that fills the street that maybe the problem will somehow go away?

I know you know better. You gave the country and the world a man who wasn't up for the job and all he does is hire people who aren't up for the job. You did this to us, to the world, to the people of New Orleans. Please fix it. Bush is yours. And you know, for our peace and safety and security, this has to be fixed. What do you propose?

I have an idea, and it isn't a horse show.

Yours,
Michael Moore
www.michaelmoore.com
mmflint@aol.com

[listening to: Need You Tonight - INXS ]
6:13:44 PM    comment []  trackback []  G!   • My Interests

How to make a FRANK

Ingredients: 3 parts competetiveness 3 parts humour 5 parts instinct

Method: Add to a cocktail shaker and mix vigorously. Add a little wisdom if desired!

[listening to: Johnson's Aeroplane - INXS ]
9:30:12 PM    comment []  trackback []  G!   • Geek

Michael Moore's latest email is a beauty - not much else needs to be said.

From: maillist@michaelmoore.com [mailto:maillist@michaelmoore.com]
Sent: Wednesday, 7 September 2005 5:26 PM
Subject: Here's How You Can Make an Immediate Difference in Louisiana ...a message from Michael Moore

Friends,

There is much to be said and done about the manmade annihilation of New Orleans, caused NOT by a hurricane but by the very specific decisions made by the Bush administration in the past four and a half years. Do not listen to anyone who says we can discuss all this later. No, we can't. Our country is in an immediate state of vulnerability. More hurricanes, wars, and other disasters are on the way, and a lazy bunch of self-satisfied lunatics are still running the show.

So, in the next few days, I will write to you about what must be done about Bush and Co.

But today I want you to join with me in bypassing the colossally inept and incompetent Bush administration and get help DIRECTLY to the people of the New Orleans area -- right now.

A lot of you have written me to ask what you can do. Many don't know who to trust. Many want to do more than write a check. You are right to think that writing checks to relief agencies will not get water and aid to people in the next 48 hours. Checks will be needed later and can be written later.

I have a way, though, for each and every one of us to do something today that can affect people's lives TODAY.

For the past few days I've been working with a group that, I guarantee you, will get direct aid to the people who need it most.

Cindy Sheehan, the brave woman who dared to challenge Mr. Bush at his summer home, has now sent her Camp Casey from in front of Bush's ranch to the outskirts of New Orleans. The Veterans for Peace have taken all the equipment and staff of volunteers and set up camp in Covington, Louisiana, on the shores of Lake Pontchartrain. They are accepting materials and personally distributing them to those in need.

This is where we come in. We need to ship supplies to them immediately. Today they need the following:

Paper plates, paper towels, toilet paper, baby diapers, baby wipes, baby formula, Pedialyte, baby items in general, powder, lotion, handy wipes, sterile gloves, electrolytes, LARGE cans of veggies, school supplies, and anything else to lift people's spirits.

You can ship these items by following the instructions on VFPRoadTrips.org. Or you can deliver them there in person. The roads to Covington are open. Here's how to get there. You can drop them off or you can stay and participate (if you stay, you'll be camping so bring your own tent and gear and mosquito spray).

If you can't ship these items or go there in person, then go to VFPRoadTrips.org and make an immediate donation through PayPal. Camp Casey-Covington will have immediate access to this cash and can buy the items themselves from stores that are open in Louisiana (all donations to Veterans for Peace, are tax deductible).

Each day I will post up-to-the minute information as to what is needed and the progress Camp Casey is making. Please visit MichaelMoore.com often and do what you can to help.

Many other groups are also doing good work. MoveOn.org has set up a system for people to offer rooms in their homes to the survivors.

There is no time to waste. People are suffering and dying. Each of us can do something. There is no other alternative.

Thank you in advance for your help. Tomorrow, we will take care of the other work we need to do about the ideologically hamstrung incompetents in charge.

Yours,
Michael Moore
Mike@MichaelMoore.com
MichaelMoore.com

[listening to: Where the Wild Roses Grow - Kylie Minogue ]
5:50:23 PM    comment []  trackback []  G!  

One of my favourite character actor passed away on the weekend

Bob Denver, or as he was known to millions of his fans as Gilligan from Gilligan's Island died on the weekend.

I loved the show - it was one of my favorites as a child. I had my own hat, just like Gilligan. I dreamed of eating a coconut cream pie, as cooked by Maryanne.

I had recently gotten my kids watching the show on one of the local foxtel channels. The kids liked it too. 

See ya Little Buddy.

[listening to: Cigarettes Will Kill You - Ben Lee ]
5:47:54 PM    comment []  trackback []  G!   • TV

Here's the summary of the Saints Season in 2005

9:24:10 PM    comment []  trackback []  G!   • My Hobbies

The Saints won their first final on the weekend. It was an awesome display againts the crows. They have a week off awaiting the result between Sydney & Geelong

The Saints are now favorites for the flag. I'm trying to restrain myself. It's difficult not to be excited.

9:20:25 PM    comment []  trackback []  G!   • My Hobbies

You Are Likely a First Born

At your darkest moments, you feel guilty. At work and school, you do best when you're researching. When you love someone, you tend to agree with them often. In friendship, you are considerate and compromising. Your ideal careers are: business, research, counseling, promotion, and speaking. You will leave your mark on the world with discoveries, new information, and teaching people to dream.

[listening to: The Golden Ticket/Factory - Danny Elfman ]
12:04:03 AM    comment []  trackback []  G!   • Random

Today was Father's Day.

My kids let me sleep in until 10.30am, and then they brought me breakfast in bed, and some lovely gifts.

Following our regular lunch at Leichardt, the boys took me to see the recently opened Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Emma didn't come with us, she sees it next week with her friends at Amy's birthday party.

The movie was excellent. Johnny Depp was terrific as the disturbed Willy Wonka, abd Bricey loved the Oompa Loompas (who were all played by the same actor). I was surprised to see aussie actor Noah Taylor playing Charlie's dad.

Tim Burton has another quirky hit. But don't take my word for it - even The SMH liked it

[listening to: America, F**k Yeah - Original Soundtrack ]
11:29:08 PM    comment []  trackback []  G!   • Family