Birthday/Christmas Lists

As requested, here are some ideas for the two of us. For Angie Amazon wish list Slippers Long-sleeve night-shirts A small teapot Work shirts that don't need to be tucked-in Leather belts (one brown; one black -- for work slacks) Goalie shirt Membership to Audible.com Stand-up easel Full-size Popcorn popper (like in real theatres) Shirt/Sweater - L Pants/Skirts - 12 Favorite color: Pink Likes: Games, Movies, SciFi, Snoopy, Cool kitchen gadgets, Storage/shelf organizers Dislikes: Red, Velcro For Justin Amazon wish list A high quality microscope ("ADVANCED BINOCULAR COMPOUND MICROSCOPE 40X-1600X") Oscilloscope Air compressor Honda EU1000i or EU2000i generator XM radio Size - XL Shirts with no collar; v-neck or large neck Favorite color: Dark green Likes: Movies, Computers, Cool techie gadgets, Books, Stainless steel and brushed chrome finishes, Gift certificates Dislikes: Cows, Dust-collectors For Both Electric Wok with "sear" setting Heatable icecream scoop A really good camping tent A big gift card for Lowe's, Home Depot, or Harbor Freight Planning time from a Landscape architect Certificates to a nursery Time and elbow grease to work on the house (either outside or in)

Boston Movies

Justin wanted to see the new Scorsese movie, so we went to The Departed yesterday morning. I'm rating it a 7 for now, which is kind of a stretch. Although the acting was superb, and the story starts off interesting, I don't feel that it really went anywhere. I mean I am starting to get used to movies that just "end", but there wasn't even the usual character depth that one comes to expect from a good drama. Furthermore, there were too many holes in the story that made the situation not very believable. Yet I really enjoyed Nicholson's and Baldwin's performances. So for comparison, we also watched Good Will Hunting, which still holds to its perfect 10 rating. Now here's a Boston I can believe in and characters I care about. 'Nuff said.

A day in the life

5:30am

Alarm goes off. But my dream is so nice.... snooze.

5:39am

Alarm again. Darn it. Dream is ruined. But I'm soooo tired..... snooze.

Several more snoozes later

Alright, alright. I'm getting up already.

Stumble, as quietly as possible so as not to wake Justin, through the bathroom into my closet. Stare blankly at the shelves for a few minutes while my brain slowly engages. What day of the week is it? What is the weather going to be like? When did I last wear this shirt? Eventually take a stack of clothes from the closet back into the bathroom and turn on the shower. Step on the scale. Yikes! Can't eat anything again today. Step into the shower. Yikes! Water is still too cold. Do I need to shave my legs today? Which shampoo do I use?

About 20 minutes later

Go downstairs and feed the cat. Drink some milk and take some vitamins. Is there anything I'm forgetting? Get in the car and head to work.

Between 7:00am and 7:30ish

Arrive at work and turn on the computer. Fill up my water cup. Read waiting work emails. Connect to computer at home and read home emails. Check schedule for meetings or other things that might interfere with lunch. Run the randomizer and send an email to friends inviting to chosen lunch location. Try to prioritize the tasks for the day and start working. On a good day, this will be actually programming. Other times, it's a struggle between more tedious things like writing documentation, composing emails to various people, and sitting in meetings.

11:00am

Lunch time! Enjoy time chatting with friends and getting out of the office.

Between 12:00pm and 12:15pm

Grudgingly go back to the office. Refill water cup. Read work email. Connect to home computer and read home email. Update the time entry system by trying to figure out what I've actually worked on during the day. Try to actually do the loathsome tasks avoided thus far.

Between 4:00pm and 4:30ish

Time to go home! Do I need gas? Do I need anything at the grocery store?

Most days: Change into walking clothes. Go on a walk with Justin. Eat leftovers or cook meal or go out to eat. Play computer game or watch movie or read book.

Mondays: Play soccer.

Every other Thursday: Play games with friends.

Sometimes: Do house work, yard work, other chore.

Around 10:00pm

Yikes! It's bed-time (or past it). Change clothes. Put in ear plugs. Put on eye mask and wrist brace. Please, please go to sleep quickly so I can get up tomorrow.

The sweet by and by

Yes, I am WAY overdue for some sort of update. There hasn't been much going on other than watching more movies, but none of them are really worth reviewing. However, I finally made a step toward the resumption of the annual Ozark shopping trip last night by reserving some hotel rooms. This year we are skipping over our standard spot at Econo Lodge to try out Howard Johnson. It has the standard free internet and breakfast, but I'm most excited about the hot-tub. Now we can truly relax after a long day on our feet by soaking in some warm water. The trip should be taking place from October 19 through 22. If you haven't been thinking about what you want for Christmas, you better start now! Chances are, I'll be buying something for you while at the outlet stores. :)

Four movie marathon

I finally had a chance to watch all of the Harry Potter movies recently. When they first came out, I was not all that interested since it was a "children's" story. I did see the Sorcerer's Stone and that only reinforced the idea that the plots would not be intricate enough for my taste. However, based on my sister's recommendation, I gave the books a try. She told me they get better and better, so I stuck with them until I was drawn in around the third book. To my delight, the the stories did evolve as the characters got older. Anyway, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone is still the weakest of the movies and also the weakest of the books. I rate it a 6 because it did a very good job visually and does set up the characters well. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets rates an 8 because of the execellent mystery and character development. This is where I really began to love Dumbledore. So of course, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban is somewhat diminished because of the new headmaster. This one only rates a 7, as I don't think it did a very good job with the time turner and other story intracacies. Finally, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire gets an 8 with more lovely visuals and better handling of story details. Overall, I think my sister explained it best -- the movies are not really all that good in and of themselves. They are just execellent ways to apply visuals to what we read and remind ourselves of the story elements that we loved in the books.

Catch up on movie ratings

Yes, I know it is a shame I haven't posted in a long while. My life has settled into the normal quiet pace of nothing-exciting-going-on. But I do continue to watch a lot of movies. I've even been to the theatre quite a bit lately. So below is my attempt to summarize all that I can remember from the past month or so. Basic Instinct 2 - 2 I wasn't expecting much, but I did hope that they at least kept the character interesting and intelligent like she seemed in the first one. In the end, it really just felt like an older actress trying to reclaim her youth. The story wasn't was good and even the big reveal at the end I thought could have been done a lot better. Brokeback Mountain - 4 As often happens with Hollywood Westerns, all the critical hype makes me think there is something more to the film, so I will watch it and find out that it's really just a boring cowboy story. The actors did a great job in filling up 2 hours of movie when they only had 20 minutes of dialog to work with. Clerks II - 6 I really enjoy Kevin Smith's dialog. He often seems more realistic than many other screenwriters today. I even often enjoy his sense of humor. However, I think a few of the jokes in this went too far. And the plight of the main character seemed too much like the first movie -- it was the same story only in color. Find Me Guilty - 5 I really like Vin Diesel. I think he has talent, and I think he did a great job in this film. Nonetheless, the film felt very "standard" and predictable. Furthermore, I don't tend to like stories about the mafia, especially when they are skewed to look like good guys. Gone in 60 Seconds - 4 Some recent interest in Angelina Jolie's work made me want to see this again. I couldn't remember much of it, and after seeing it a second time I now know why -- there isn't really much there. A few standard car chase scenes, some typical Hollywood bad jokes, some decent music; but no story to pull me in. No character development that interested me. Rumor Has It... - 5 Yes, it is true that I sometimes get a typical "girlish" streak and like to see a standard romantic comedy. Sometimes you run across these suprising little gems. This was not one of those, but rather a more typical story. The only thing interesting is the way they tried to tie it back to The Graduate.

YACBM

I saw Yet Another Comic Book Movie this weekend with my family -- Superman Returns -- in IMAX 3D no less. Despite the impressive graphics, I'm going to rate it only a 6. The story just didn't pull me in. The dialog was kind of flat. The acting was pretty good, but again didn't really leave a strong impression. Plus, the big secret "reveal" basically made me think, "Oh, here goes Hollywood again." Overall, I would rather have seen it on DVD, but it was worth a watch nonetheless.