Forgetting to Eat Lunch is a Bad Idea

I can be a fairly focused person. When something comes up that I'm paying a lot of attention to, I've been known to forget to do a multitude of other things, such as remembering to stir the chili, take out the dog, do the laundry, or--more often--eat. The same thing happened to me today. I've been working on a promotional poster for a series of library workshops aimed at helping students increase their library skills. Unfortunately, I got so involved with that poster that I forgot I had a meeting at 1--and so I was supposed to eat early. Right after the meeting (now), I'm on the reference desk. And I teach tonight from 6 until 7:30.

This is just to say that I'm hungry, and I'd like a break about now.

That is all.

PS--Well, one more thing. Every time I feel like complaining, I realize that my day could, in fact, be much much worse. This worse, in fact. I'll think twice the next time I wear my Eeyore costume to work.

Why I Like the Amazing Race

DKC and I were trying to relax last night--I'd gotten all in a huff about politics (something that's happening more and more often lately)--so we decided to kick back and watch the season premiere of The Amazing Race. I love this show, and DKC asked me why. She's got a point. It's reality television, it's about airplanes and airports--things I detest in real life. I think the reason it appeals to me is because it gives me a chance to see a whole lot of traveling happening, but with the plane rides all reduced to Indiana Jones-style red lines traveling across a map. I don't have to live through the rides. Plus, it reminds me of It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World and Rat Race. Who doesn't love a good "race across the world and try to get to the money first" kind of thing?

Speaking of movies, I watched two over the weekend. Fearless Vampire Killers was absolutely dreadful. Two hours of my life I am never getting back. Thankfully, it was two hours I was sick, and I slept through some of it, so there are worse ways of losing two hours. Marnie was a different story. It's a Hitchcock, starring Sean Connery. Definitely high on the creepy scale, and well-done enough (though some of the acting was a tad off), but it left me with a bad aftertaste in my mind. Just disturbing. Thankfully, BYU moved up to 7th and 8th place in the polls this weekend, so that went a long way to taking that taste away. :-)

Why I am Disgusted with Politics

Well, the obvious reason is because this blasted election cycle seems to have been going on for the last few millennia. But more specifically, I'm sick of the posturing--sick of the finger pointing and name calling. I swear--it's like every time something goes wrong, everyone in Washington starts laying on blame. It's worse than the kids fighting in the backseat on a family vacation. Nobody's getting anything done. Politicians seem like a vast group of wildly inept people who have no concept of what the term "budget" is actually supposed to mean. If I ran my budget like the government runs theirs, I'd be in prison now.

What are our choices for president this year? On the one hand, we've got McCain, a man who freely admitted he knows next to nothing about the economy, but who then decided he had to be in the middle of the economic debate instead of attending the presidential one. (Yes, I'm aware he's since committed to going to the debate tonight, but that doesn't change my low opinion of his move.) Plus, I find it suspicious that talks seemed to be going just fine until McCain got there, and then suddenly the GOP was getting all resistant to things. If McCain went just to screw things up . . .

In the other corner, we have Obama, a man whose campaign reminds me of people running for high school class president. He promises everything in the world and reassures us that it won't cost anything. I'm interested to see what he has to say about his Big Plans tonight now that the economy is in the toilet. The man's like Willy Wonka, with promises of everlasting gobstoppers. Reality check, please?

Anyway. It just gets me that there doesn't seem to be any real work going on in Washington. We pay our taxes, and at times it feels like I don't see a whole lot in return for that money. I'll get off my soapbox now. Thanks for listening.

Immigration: Why It's a Real Pain

So for today's still-sick-but-I-have-to-post-something-better-or-I'll-feel-like-a-total-slacker post, I'm going to give all ya'll some linkage over to a fascinating flowchart. I know: generally the words "fascinating" and "flowchart" aren't supposed to go together in the same sentence, but this is the exception to the rule, I swear. It's all about how the legal immigration process works in the US, and how hard it can be to do it. Go check it out. When DKC and I were going through this, it was a big ol' pain. Lots of money, lots of "deadlines," and lots of interviews. What really got frustrating was that they would say you had to meet a certain deadline or else your application was denied, but the government felt free to skip any deadlines they wanted. Grrr . . . Glad that it's over now--especially because that means we don't have to worry as much when we travel internationally. (Have I ever told you about the time DKC and I went roaming through the streets of Vienna when we were supposed to be on an airplane? British Air wouldn't let DKC use London as a layover city unless she had a "transit visa," because Slovakia was on a list of "dangerous countries." Seriously. Iran, Iraq, Syria . . . Slovakia? What's the matter with these people? But I digress . . .) Go check out the page and tell me what you think.

Would You Believe?

I'm sick again? Head cold, courtesy of my son, courtesy of who knows who. I slept 12 hours last night to try and kick it, but it's still keeping me down. Sigh. And I have to teach tonight, then go to a ward mission meeting. Fun times. Throat lozenge, anyone?

Jar Jar Haters are Out of Luck

So I was sitting here looking at my Google Analytics results for my personal website (www.brycemoore.com), and I discovered a number of things:

First of all, my website is the first result when you type "jar jar binks language" into Google. It's also the first result for "bryce moore" and "albert packard," which is nice. I'd been like third or fifth before. So no doubt the site is attracting hordes of Jar Jar haters and people stalking Bryce Moores and Albert Packards.

In the nineteen months my website has been on Google Analytics, I've had 1,983 visits, and people stay on the site for 54 seconds before getting the heck out of there and going someplace interesting.

Seriously, my web site has gotten woefully out of date. My blog is alive and thriving--the website . . . not so much. Part of this is due to the fact that I get paid to make the library website, and when I get home from working on that all day, I'm not too keen to dive back into more coding in my spare time. The other part is due to the fact that, as I've stated multiple times on this blog, I'm lazy. Still, I really ought to get with the program a bit better. The last time I posted something new on there was back in July of 2007, when I was still in Utah. Yeah. Time for updating it.

But I don't think that's going to happen anytime soon, really. I mean, the site's a mess. I don't like the look of it--it's like a six year old with a pack of Crayolas designed it. That means that when I want to get back to it, I'm going to need to totally redo the thing. I'd like to put my photoshop skills to work and come up with something halfway decent. That will all take time, and it's time I just don't have right now. At the very least I'd like to put my blog over on the page, then have two presences--one here at LJ and one on my blog. But to do THAT, I'd have to figure out how to do it. And really, I'm far too busy playing bass guitar and whittling loons to have time to do that. Maybe if/when I ever get a book published, then I'll put more time to the website. Or maybe when the library site is better finished, then I'll be able to put some creative juices toward that. We'll see.

In the meantime, all you Jar Jar haters are just going to have to deal with a crappy website. You got a problem with that?

Birthdays

Thank you to all of you who wished me a happy birthday yesterday. It was a busy day (nine hours of church related activities can do that to a Sunday), but I had a very nice dinner in the evening, and I got to spend some time with my other new toy: a whittling knife. I'm working on a loon. It's a good thing I've never seen a loon in real life, because I have a feeling this creation isn't going to end up being much like the real thing. But everyone starts somewhere. I'm picking up bass guitar and whittling in the same week! Wow!

I'd like to post more--some general thoughts on turning 30 and all that fun stuff . . . but I just don't have the time today. Tomorrow's looking a bit brighter--I'm on the reference desk then, and I usually have a bit of time to spend when I'm there. Today, my brain is tired. I've got the Mondays.

Bass Guitar Is Easy

Honestly. I mean, it's not like I'm going to be rockin' out on stage anytime soon, but it's by far the easiest instrument I've ever picked up to play. Of course, some of that probably comes from the fact that I've played guitar for something like six years off and on--that helps. But last night I got the bass set up (after getting it home. Those bass guitar boxes don't fit in Honda Civics, by the way. I had to go get some rope to be able to transport it safely). After the amp was on, the guitar hooked in and my iPod connected, I started going through some different songs and fumbling through the bass line. The very fact that I was able to do so fairly quickly--and get even remotely close to what I wanted it to sound like--was amazing to me. I played for like two or three hours and had a blast. One of the best presents I've ever gotten for my birthday. Thanks, whoever out there is contributing! :-)

And lest my blog get taken over my bass guitar fixations, I finished revising the first chapter of ParkerBoy this morning. The chapter is much improved--even I can tell a huge difference, just as I read it over. I'm very excited to see how this books turns out. Thanks for all your comments, faithful readers!

Gift Buying

So I just got back from getting me my birthday present. This year, I've asked people to contribute to the Buy Bryce a Bass Guitar Fund (BBBGF), and I had planned on waiting until I actually had the funds in hand before purchasing said bass (and after my birthday, which is Sunday). However, after a trip to my local music store, I found a really good deal that might not be hanging around much longer, so I bought the bass today. It's a Squier Jazz Bass. Red. I got the bass, the amp, a gig bag, strap, stand, headphones, instruction book, DVD, tuner, cables--the whole shebang. The book won't be here until Tuesday, but I'm looking forward to going home and getting acquainted with the instrument tonight.

About eight years ago, I got an acoustic guitar, and I took one semester of "how to play" at BYU. I can do all simple chords and even a few bar chords, and so I'm good strumming along to songs, and I can pick the melody out on the guitar pretty fine. So why did I want a bass? Well, I was trying to decide between an electric guitar or bass, mainly because I wanted the different sound. I already have a guitar, so getting an electric one would seem a tad redundant. Yes, electric are supposedly a tad easier to play (don't know--never played one), but anything I could play on an electric guitar, I could play on an acoustic. With a bass guitar, the top two strings are gone, and everything's about 3 octaves lower. I've always been drawn to bass parts (my other instruments were bassoon and sax--and I preferred the barry), and my favorite bands usually feature bass quite prominently. (Side note: CAKE is coming to Colby College in a few weeks. I don't suppose any of you are interested in going?)

Anyway--that's all I have time for right now. I'm looking forward to getting home and trying this puppy out. I wonder if I should name it?

Pleased to Announce

I finally was able to put up the beta version of the library website I've been working on for a year. My plan is to test it out this semester and then have the final version live for the new year. If any of you want to check it out and make any suggestions, feel free to drop me a line. At least you can see what I do to keep myself busy these days, when I'm not writing and watching movies. :-)

Check it out here.

Old School Animation

Yesterday I made circus popcorn with my son while DKC was off canning tomatoes. We finished (he chose to color it orange this time), and I popped in the old Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe animated movie. I hadn't seen this in years and years, but I watched it quite a bit when I was growing up, and my sister gave it to us a while ago for Christmas. TRC hadn't wanted to watch it, because he was convinced it would be too scary for him (there was a picture of the White Witch on the cover, and I think she freaked him out). Anyway, we watched it and had a great time.

But in the process, I was amazed to see just how ghetto the animation in that movie is. I mean, I could do a better job drawing than that. But when I was a kid, I didn't notice anything like that. The movie was fun to watch, and it showed one of my favorite stories. What was there not to like? And despite the crazy animation, I still have to say that I like the movie, though I'm not sure how much of that is because I was exposed to it so often as an impressionable child. The movie starts right after Lucy gets out of the wardrobe for the first time, which was an interesting choice, but then it chose to show everything that happened before then via a flashback with Lucy narrating, which was fairly lame. It got better after that, managing to tell the story in a capable fashion. While we were watching, TRC reminded me why I liked it so much as a kid: Peter and Edmund are in the final battle, duking it out with swords against a horde of baddies. TRC sat up and said, "Yeah! Those kids are really good at fighting!"

Lesson learned? Connect with kids on their level in a way that is meaningful to them, and you can get by with a whole lot of inferiority. TRC didn't care about the animation or the weird plot devices. The story made sense, there were characters he could relate to, and it was interesting and exciting to watch. I think sometimes as a writer I get too hung up on this detail or that detail, forgetting that it's the essence that you've got to get right. If that works, everything else is forgivable. If it doesn't, does it really matter that the prose is pretty?

The Fair

The fair was a resounding success. TRC and I sat down and discussed what we could do at the fair before we went, and how we didn't want to spend too much money, especially when there were lots of fun things to do at the fair, and we wanted to be able to do them all before DC got cranky (that's the baby, for you neophytes out there, not my wife). So we came to the agreement that we'd set a $30 budget and let him go on one ride, as long as it was "a really cool one," as he put it. At the fair, we walked all through the rides, and he ended up opting for the Merry-Go-Round, which he thoroughly enjoyed. After that, he didn't ask to go on another ride. I have a great son, what can I say?

In addition to that, we had donuts, maple syrup cotton candy (a Maine treat--yummy!), saw tractors and trucks and a plethora of animals (pigs, cows, ducks, geese, chickens, horses, goats), checked out a blacksmith working, a beekeeper, went through the exhibition hall (where DKC had won first prize for one of her baskets--earning us $3!) and (drumroll please) watched the demolition derby. There really aren't words to describe the pleasure you get from watching other people ram into each other in an effort to total automobiles. TRC loved it, although he thought it was too loud. DC was in more or less of a stunned-haze for most of the fair. Too noisy.

In any case, we had a great time. Nice to have this around my birthday each year--and strange to be already doing things here in Maine for the second time. This means that lawn mowing season is almost over, wood stacking needs to start happening soon, and then there will be snow shoveling--no wait! No shoveling this year. I've got that snow blower. Hooray!

Dilemmas

So the fair's in town, and we're going tonight. Only problem is the rides cost $4 a spin, which (if you ask me) is vastly overpriced for a carnival ride. I know TRC's going to want to go on them, and I don't want to be an ogre or anything, but . . . that's a chunk of change. No doubt by the time I read your responses, I will have already made up my mind, but my question for you is: what would you do? Set a budget out for your four year old about how much money he can spend, just dictate to him that he can't go on the rides, not set a budget and let him go to town, or buy him something else that's an equivalent amount of money, but that he'll be able to use more than for a few minutes?

Smells

Now, maybe this isn't Kosher to say. And if it isn't, then I apologize. I know that paper mills provide people with important jobs and all, but . . . how to put it? They stink more than a pig farm. It's just so unnatural. For those of you who haven't been near a paper mill, the smell is reminiscent of feeding a rowdy herd of cattle and cowboys nothing but beans and cheese for a month straight, then locking them in a room for a week, forcing them all to do jumping jacks until rivers of sweat ran down them (cowboys and cows alike), then booting them all out of the room and letting all that rancid smell of flatulence, body odor and filth just fester and mold for another month. Take that, bottle it, and unleash it in the great outdoors on a grand scale.

That's the smell I had when I went out to my garage today.

It's not every day (thankfully), but when it comes, the smell is enough to make me want to wilt and die. BAD.

In Utah, when there's a weather inversion, it gets all smoggy. Here, it gets smelly. I think I'll take the smog over the smell.

Okay--I'm over it now. Thanks for listening.

I Forgot

Yeah. I forgot to blog today. I hereby formally apologize to the blogging community at large. Because I'm sure that they've all been waiting, anxious to find out if something had happened to me. You can all now breathe a big sigh of relief. I'm fine. Just busy. These things happen sometime. Oh well.

Success

Last night's teaching went well. Still, today and yesterday have been crazy busy, and I didn't force myself out of bed this morning to do my writing, so I've been feeling vaguely guilty all day. On the plus side, I watched Fringe last night and really enjoyed it, so maybe it's all worth it. The weather's lovely right now in Maine, with the leaves just starting to turn and the air nice and crisp. It's at times like these that I wonder why in the world everyone doesn't live here.

Then winter comes, and I remember. Some people have something against snow.

People without snow blowers.

Mwa ha ha!

Teaching

I'm teaching a class this semester. It's two sections of a technology module on using technology to do research and keep track of sources. Nothing big--just six hours total of classroom time for each section. But I must admit that I'm looking forward to it (and not just because I'm getting paid some more to teach it). I enjoyed teaching Freshman Comp and Advanced Writing at BYU, and I've missed it. It'll be nice to be doing something that keeps my teaching skills at least fairly current. Of course, it also means that my already hectic schedule is just that much more hectic, but such is life.

Last night DKC and I finished watching the first season of Eli Stone, which I must say we both thoroughly enjoyed. Quirky, musical and funny--a fresh take on the typical courtroom drama. It'll be back on the air October 14th, and I encourage you all to check it out.

Tonight, once I'm back from teaching, I plan on watching the pilot of JJ Abrams' new show, Fringe, which looks like a new X-Files, which could be highly cool. We shall see.

For now, I have to go eat something so that I don't faint during the hour and a half class tonight. Wish me luck!

Why Is It?

Why is it that electronics all has to come in packaging that's such a pain to open? I mean, it's okay if you just get something electronic now and then, but if you're like me and do this sort of thing professionally, then having to deal with one package turns into having to deal with 20 packages. Not my idea of a good time.

How did you all spend your weekends? I mowed my lawn again (after fixing the lawn tractor Friday), and I have to say that having a fixed lawn tractor means all the difference. No more raking up the clippings after I mow. Nice. Saturday was spent watching BYU manage to beat Washington, despite that little mixup with the refs at the end of the game. (Washington fans, I hate to break it to you, but that PAT attempt was totally stuffed. I don't care if you were 15 yards closer, it wouldn't have made a difference, so stop getting in such a huff about it. Geez.) The true test will come Saturday when we go up against UCLA. I have high hopes. Then again, I usually have high hopes. BYU is just good at taking those hopes and dashing them to the ground, then pouring gasoline on them and burning them, right before they throw them into a Port-a-Potty. Which is about where my hopes for the Yankees are this year, so hey--at least my hopes will have company.

In other news, I've officially started the rewrite process of ParkerBoy. Not sure how long this is going to take me. I took a few weeks off to give myself some distance--and to let all the readers get back to me--and now I'm trying to filter through the comments and figure out what needs doing. It's not going to be as extensive of a rewrite as I first thought. Most of the problems appear in the first third, and I've come up with some good ways to tweak things to get things in proper reading condition. Thanks to all the faithful readers out there!

And now, I think I'll go see about throwing away 20 packages . . .

Tom Hanks

I haven't done anything really film-geeky on this blog lately, and to commemorate my first day back on the reference desk, and by popular demand (well, one person's demand, at least), today's topic shall be on All the Tom Hanks Movies I Have Ever Seen. Hanks has been in some really good flicks (and some not so great ones, I suppose), but I've seen quite a few. These are all going to be drawn from his IMDB page, so feel free to check that out and see if you've got me beat in total Tom Hanks exposure. Chronologically, here we go:

Splash (1984)--My journey begins with Tom Hanks falling in love with a mermaid. Directed by Ron Howard and also starring Darryl Hannah and John Candy, I enjoyed this movie. Not one of his best, but nothing to sniff at, either.

Bachelor Party (1984)--Released the same year, and not nearly as good. I'm pretty sure I saw this edited on television, which perhaps takes the zing out. I mean, when the whole purpose of the movie is to depict a raunchy bachelor party, once you edit out the raunch, there's likely not much left. I probably wasn't in the target audience for this one to begin with, seeing as how I've never even attended a bachelor party, let alone a raunchy one. I'm not big on weddings (hence the me eloping thing), and Utah + Mormon Weddings doth not a whole lot of raunch make. Go figure.

The Man with One Red Shoe (1985)--I admit I have a soft spot for this one, likely because I watched it before I developed any taste in movies. But hey, it's got Carrie Fisher and Jim Belushi in it, so it can't be all bad, right? Hanks plays a guy who's randomly selected to be portrayed as a spy. Convoluted plot. I like it, but I remember having recommended it to friends and family in the past, only to have them grouse about the recommendation later on. So watch at your own risk. Unless you want to see Carrie Fisher in leopard print.

The Money Pit (1986)--I consider this a must-see if you're house hunting. Hanks and Shelley Long end up buying a "steal" of a house, only to later discover just how many problems it really has. The premise could have been done a lot better, and as I recall it tends to lag toward the end, but there's still a lot of fun to be had here.

Dragnet (1987)--Hanks and Dan Aykroyd in the film adaptation of the television series. Only campier. With pagans. Again, not Hanks' best work, but diverting at least. Although it's been a while since I saw this one. It's usually on Comedy Central now and again, and I've seen bits and pieces.

Big (1988)--Now we're getting into what I consider Classic territory. I really enjoyed this movie. Tom Hanks is a twelve year old boy who wishes to grow up. The next morning, he awakes as a thirty year old. Just without any of the maturity. Very well done, depicting how he has to adapt to life as an adult. If you haven't seen this one, you should.

The Burbs (1989)--Meh. Maybe I need to give this one another shot. Hanks is suspicious his neighbors are up to no good. So he gets really nosy and hilarity is supposed to ensue. I don't have fond memories of this one, but I'm not sure if I even watched it in its entirety. Anyone want to set me straight? Should I give it another go?

Turner & Hooch (1989)--Hanks is a cop who gets partnered with a dog. Again, I watched this as a kid, back when dog slobber was funny. If you still find dog slobber funny, this film is for you. Not Hanks' best movie by far.

Joe vs. the Volcano (1990)--One of my flat out all time favorite films. I'm not arguing that with you. I never said that. If I said that, I would have been wrong. Hanks is a man with a terminal brain cloud, so he agrees to offer himself as a sacrifice to a volcano on a distant island. Meg Ryan ensues. I LOVE this movie. It feels like how I felt in Utah, and Maine is the Volcano. Just with less lava. And less orange soda. If you haven't seen this one, please go out and rent it today. Buy it. Or ask me and I'll come over to your house and watch it with you. Some people don't think this is great. Those people are wrong. I own this movie.

A League of Their Own (1992)--I've blogged about this one before. Tom Hanks is a washed out coach hired to coach a women's baseball team. It's got Madonna and Rosie O'Donnell in it, but if you can get over that (which is made easier by the addition of Gina Davis, who I used to have a crush on), it really is a good movie. I especially love the Jon Lovitz character in it. See, how it works is, the train moves, not the station.

Sleepless in Seattle (1993)--I assume it goes without saying that you know this movie. Great romantic comedy, but I'm not in the business of promoting well-known Chick Flicks. :-) Okay, fine. I like this movie. There. I said it. But Joe vs. the Volcano is better. I own this movie.

Philadelphia (1993)--The only movie I have ever snuck in to see. I went to see it opening night, only to discover it was sold out. So I bought a ticket to a different movie then went to this one. Yes, I'm an awful person who now has a special place in the bowels of hell reserved for him. Such is my fate. If it's any consolation, I was a teenager, and this movie was officially Over My Head. I haven't seen it since--too depressing, and I'm not into depressing myself repeatedly with the same movies. I like to spread the depression around. Hanks won one of his two Oscars for his role in this, as a man with AIDS who fights back against the company that fired him.

Forrest Gump (1994)--Again, surely you've seen this movie. It won Hanks his second Oscar. Two in a row for our boy. Long rumored to have a sequel in production, but it never happened. It's also got the Princess from the Princess Bride and the kid who sees Dead People from Sixth Sense. That's cool, right? I own this movie.

Apollo 13 (1995)--Another classic. Houston we have a problem. Hanks is one of the astronauts on the Apollo 13 mission to the moon. One that goes terribly wrong. If you haven't seen it, I won't spoil it for you. Watch it. I own this movie.

Toy Story (1995)--Come on. You know this one. Pixar's first CGI animated film. Classic. #177 on IMDB. The birth of a great film making company. I own this movie.

That Thing You Do (1996)--In high school, I remember referring to this movie as That Movie That Sucks Really Bad. I no longer feel that way about it. It's now That Movie With That Song That Sticks In Your Head and Won't Leave. Hanks is a manager of a 60's boy band. It's a fine film, but I've never been able to get over my senior year dislike of it. Nothing personal. It's me. Not you.

From the Earth to the Moon (1998)--A miniseries Hanks did for HBO, all about the US's mission to the moon. Great stuff. DKC and I watched this back in Utah, and I have very fond memories of it. If you live in the area, I know of a way to hook you up with this set. Ask me about it if you're into space stuff.

Saving Private Ryan (1998)--Remember that thing about me not liking depressing movies? Well this one is an exception. Yes, it's really violent. But you owe it to yourself to watch this movie. Steven Spielberg directs WWII. Come on. It's a classic.

You've Got Mail (1998)--Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks are back in an adaptation of The Shop Around the Corner. I enjoyed this movie, and I recommend it. Light and fluffy, but the ladies like it. :-) I own this movie.

Toy Story 2 (1999)--Yes, they made a sequel. You already knew that. Did you know they're going to re-release both movies in 3D, followed by Toy Story 3? Well, now you know something new. Look at that. Great movie. Don't own it. Yet.

The Green Mile (1999)--Tom Hanks in a story by Stephen King. Very long, but a great movie. Just watch out for the execution scenes. Hanks plays a guard on death row. Not a depressing movie, despite the subject matter.

Castaway (2000)--This one IS a depressing movie. And it's long. And it has Tom Hanks remove a tooth using only an ice skate. That said, it's a good movie. (I watched it in the theater with my brother Wilson, who didn't take too kindly to having the volleyball named after him.) :-) It's thought provoking, that's for sure. Just don't expect to be whistling Zip-a-dee-doo-da once you finish it.

Road to Perdition (2002)--Hanks is a gangster hitman who goes on the run to protect his son. It's got Paul Newman in it--based on a graphic novel. Very nice film.

Catch Me If You Can (2002)--Another Steven Spielberg. I used to dislike Leonardo DiCaprio, but the guy's grown on me. In this one Hanks plays an FBI agent chasing a counterfeit expert. Great soundtrack by John Williams. I own this movie.

The Ladykillers (2004)--Tom Hanks and the Coen Brothers? It's unfortunately not quite up to its potential, but I still enjoyed the heck out of it. (Which shows just how die hard a Coen brothers fan I am). A remake of an excellent Alec Guinness movie. Hanks is a swindler trying to break into a bank by way of an old lady's basement. Good stuff.

The Terminal (2004)--Another Spielberg. This time, Hanks is a man who gets stuck in an airport for months due to a passport problem. A romantic comedy that isn't quite a romantic comedy. Just don't go into it expecting your classic romantic comedy ending, and life should be good for you. It's a good movie.

The DaVinci Code (2006)--Not a good movie. The book's overhyped, and the result is this Ron Howard directed muddle that ends up being just too yawny. Sorry, Tom. Try again next time. And he is, actually. They're making a sequel/prequel thing. Here's hoping it gets better.

And there you have it. 27 movies. Man. I guess I really DO watch a lot of movies. I'd be interested to hear how other people's Hanks Rating stacks up. Let's see some digits, people--how many Hanks movies have you seen?

Red Son

I can't believe how crazy life is right now. Work is just gangbusters busy, and I'm pretty darn booked when I get home each night, too. Thank goodness DKC has the next few weeks off from work--that gives us more time to get everything else done. I don't like it when I get too swamped (does anyone?)--too much trudging forward, and I get snappy and ill-tempered. I did find time to watch Palin's speech last night, and I was fairly impressed by it. Not impressed enough to say I'm going to vote for her and Mr. Roboto, but impressed nonetheless.

Child update: DC has now started to sit up all over the place, which means good bye bouncy chairs and her little automatic swing. Now she sits in a high chair and has started using the jumping thing--you know, the one that goes in the middle of door ways? Yeah. Loves it. I'll post pictures.

One of these days. :-)

Starting to get more responses in on ParkerBoy, and they're fairly varied. This makes revising more difficult, as it means I actually have to decide what to do on my own. See, it's easier when everyone says the same thing, because then you know you have to change it. But when one person loves a character and the other one hates him or her . . . what do you do? I'm still letting it stew in my mind, and I'm hopeful that I'm only a few days away from being ready to start the revision. It's been nice to let it sit for a couple of weeks.

In other news, I haven't read a good many graphic novels, but I'm starting to dip more and more into them. It helps that the library I'm working at is developing a collection of popular materials, complete with quite a few graphic novels. Yesterday I read one that I really enjoyed: Red Son. Basically, it rests on the premise that Superman crashed into earth as a child 12 hours later (or earlier) than he did in the normal comic, and what effect that has on the world. You see, 12 hours difference would mean that he landed in the USSR, not America. So he's raised believing in the merits of Communism and all that jazz. Really interesting "what if", and a fun read to boot.

Finally, I have to think up some things to tell people I want for my birthday. Anyone have any suggestions? I'm all ears. Or eyes, I suppose I should say. Unless you call me. Then I'm all ears.

Palin

I've taken the time now and then to wax political on this blog, and what with all the furor and hubbub over McCain's VP pick, I figured I might as well throw my two cents in.

It's too early to tell.

We need a better idea of who she is, what she's done, what she brings to the table before I can really say one way or the other if I like the choice or not. McCain went for a relative unknown, and so the knee-jerk reaction is to say he did it to pander to women who wanted Clinton as the Dem nominee, or that he did it to counterbalance the Obama "barrier breaking" campaign. If he did it for either of these reasons, then I think it was an asinine decision, and I'll admit, it's looking more and more like that's why McCain did it. I mean, the revelations of the last few days have been far less than flattering, and McCain doesn't need to be fighting the public and persuading us that Palin really was a good choice. Add to that the stories that he'd only met the woman once before nominating her, and it looks grim . . .

But who knows? Maybe we'll get to know her better and see that there was more substance there than what's come out so far. I hope so.

Who will I vote for? Well, McCain didn't pick Schmuckabee as his running mate, which means there's still a chance I might cast a vote for the old guy. But he didn't pick Romney, either, which means that chance isn't as great as it might have been. Right now I'm leaning toward a vote for nobody, or a vote for Obama. But there's still a lot of time left in the game. I know there are a lot of conservatives running scared about Obama, but "most liberal in the Senate" or not, presidents have one goal once they're elected: get elected again. I don't think we'd see liberalalooza in the White House under Obama. I think he's got some grand plans, and if he can actually get a couple of them done, then maybe things might improve. (Though I wish the man would stop making so many promises. There's no way he'll be able to keep all of them.)

In the end, I doubt very much if my vote will matter. 80,000 people showed up to hear Obama speak at the convention. He'd regularly drawn in record breaking crowds across the nation. 35,000 in Philly. 29,000 in South Carolina. 75,000 in Oregon. And those were before Obama even had the nomination in hand. The big news in advance of McCain's VP announcement was that he expected his biggest crowd to date: they were hoping for 15,000.

Close polls or not, I think this one'll be a blowout, unless something big changes. Palin proving to be worthy of the nomination would be one such big change. We shall see.

Enough politics. Have a nice Wednesday.

Busy Weekend

I had a great and wonderful weekend, and I'm sure I could muster up a whiz bang post about it. Pool parties, barbecues and BYU winning a football game? Talk about a good time. But . . . I have no time to do so. Work has me up to my eyeballs in new monitors, web pages, weeding, new computers, Photoshopping, emails and new software. Such is life from time to time. I'm going to head home and maybe heading out to pick blueberries. Then again, DC is teething, so maybe that won't happen. Thank goodness for teething tablets. Toodle-oo.