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Candice Millard: The River of Doubt: Theodore Roosevelt's Darkest Journey
I always admired Theodore Roosevelt and thought I knew a bit about his life. However, upon reading this book I have a renewed appreciation for Pres. Roosevelt and learned many things about his life, many tragic, that I never knew. Highly recommended read. (*****)
Nathaniel Philbrick: In the Heart of the Sea: The Tragedy of the Whaleship Essex
A great read about the true story of the Whaleship Essex that inspired Herman Melville to write Moby Dick.
Highly recommend. (****)
Patricia Cornwell: Portrait of a Killer: Jack the Ripper -- Case Closed
Talk about grasping for straws. Case closed? The only case that should be closed is Patty's writing of so called non-fiction books. Stick to fiction Patricia. Based upon her crazy assumptions, the only thing she convinced me of was that Walter Sickert was NOT Jack the Ripper. I gave it three stars just because the topic is still intriguing after over 100 years and there was some interesting facts brought out. (***)
Black & Decker Home Improvement Library: The Complete Guide to Home Wiring
(****)
Elizabeth Peters: Tomb of the Golden Bird (Amelia Peabody Mysteries)
(*****)
Betty Crocker: Betty Crocker Cookbook: Everything You Need to Know to Cook Today, Tenth Edition
(*****)
I WILL NEVER FORGET!
Last Sunday Al and I went to the Beach Boys concert held in Kirby Park to celebrate the 200th birthday of Wilkes-Barre. Mike Love was the only original member of the Beach Boys to perform, though Bruce Johnston was also there and I consider him to be an official Beach Boy. To me, Mike Love is the Beach Boys, although Brian Wilson gets more attention. Even at the age of 65 Mike Love can put on a good show. The band played for about two hours before a crowd estimated to be between 25,000 to 30,000. It was a pleasure to go to a concert and not have to hear any political bullshit spewed from the artist from either side of the political spectrum, be it conservative or liberal.
The Beach Boys are about summer, the beach and good times. That is exactly what the crowd received. If you leave a Beach Boys concert without a smile on your face or a warm feeling in your heart, see a doctor because you are probably dead. This was the sixth Beach Boys concert I have attended and look forward to my seventh. For Al it was his first, and since the boys aren't getting any younger may be his last. I'm just glad he got the opportunity to see this historic band before it was too late.
Here are a few pics from the concert.
The Friday Five on Sunday
1. Do you do dishes by hand or in a dishwasher?
95% dishwasher. 5% by hand.
2. For what amount of money would you shave your head?
I do it now for free.
3. What is one thing you have a "zero tolerance" for?
People who are always late.
4. How do you handle telemarketer calls?
I don't. Caller ID.
5. What time of day do you feel most "energized"?
Mornings and just before it time to go to sleep.
A lot has happened since my last post. Mom has had successful surgery and is doing well on the road to recovery. Al has started college. The Yankees swept a five game series against the Red Suxx in Boston, virtually eliminating them from playoff contention. Also, the solar system has shrunk since Pluto was given the heave ho.
Mom is doing well after her surgery 2 1/2 weeks ago. She will have to undergo radiation therapy for about nine weeks as a precaution. We have to meet with the doctor tomorrow to set up the schedule. She misses not being able to drive. She probably won't be able to drive for a few more weeks.
Al started college last week. He's not exactly thrilled about it. Tough! It's time for him to crack down and start thinking about his future. He best get it in his head right now that this isn't high school where he could just float by.
Two weeks ago the New York Yankees embarrassed The Boston Red Suxx by sweeping a five game series in Boston. It has since been called the Boston Massacre 2. Though the Yanks haven't been setting the league on fire since that series, the Red Suxx have never recovered from the ass-kicking they took at home. They have slipped nine games behind the Yanks, virtually insuring that the Yanks will win their ninth straight American League East title. For the Red Suxx, they have fallen 6 1/2 games out in the wild card chase and it looks like they have thrown in the towel, having traded David Wells to San Diego this week. With the free fall they have taken it looks like Derek Jeter just may overtake David Ortiz for the MVP award.
And lastly. PLUTO. We hardly knew ye. In the grand scheme of things, this probably doesn't matter one iota to anything going on in my life. So why then does this piss me off so much. I can't explain it. I grew up with Pluto. It was like a friend to me. Of all the planets, it has the coolest name. I'm on the other side of the argument. I think they should be adding planets, not deleting them. Just before they kicked poor Pluto out they were talking about adding three planets. I forget their names. I believe they were Larry, Moe and Curley, though I may be mistaken. Start a petition. Write your Congressman. Put bumper stickers on your cars. Get PLUTO reinstated. It's just the right thing to do.
I have fallen way behind in the Friday Five and won't try to catch up. I'll just pick up on this weeks questions.
1. Labor Day weekend marks the traditional end of summer. What will you miss about summer?
Nice weather. Baseball, though it does extend till fall. Riding with the windows down in the truck.
2 What won't you miss about summer?
The extremely hot temperatures in work. Anything above 90 that is, unless it's the weekend. If I'm not working, I don't care how hot it gets.
3. What do you look forward to in the fall?
Hockey. Thanksgiving. Less grass cutting and weed-whacking. New television season.
4. When you take out library books, do you return them on time?
99% of the time.
5. What do you use to mark your place in a book?
Usually a business card or some other available scrap of paper. Sometimes if the book is a paperback I'll bend a corner of the page.
Here's a new Free Association meme.
Last week was long and hot. Though I occasionally complain about the heat, it is much better than the cold. And the COLD will be here before you know it. Ice covered roofs, driveways to be shoveled, scraping ice off windshields, hazardous road conditions, heavy coats, high heating bills and only 140 shopping days till Christmas. Come to think of it, this hot weather ain't so bad after all.
I finally got the grass cut and about three quarters of the weed whacking done yesterday.It took me about five hours. Boy, did it need it. Hopefully I'll get the rest of the weed whacking done during the week. Today was a much needed day of rest.
By the way we successfully trapped and transplanted three woodchucks over the past few weeks. The rest ( one mother and one or two young ones) seem to have moved on to a new location. I haven't seen any this past week.
How about them New York Yankees!
They open up a two game ( 3 in the loss column) lead in the American League East over the Boston Red Sux.
The Friday Five on Sunday.
1 What are your five favorite stores?
Barnes & Noble, Best Buy, Lowes, Staples and Sam's Club.
2. What store do you absolutely hate going to?
I can't think of a specific store, but clothes shopping is not favorite type of shopping.
3. Do you pay with cash, credit, debit or something else?
Yes, yes, yes, and yes.
4. Do you prefer to shop in person or online?
I usually do research online and buy in person.
5. If you were on Who Wants To Be A Millionaire, whose three names would you submit to be your lifelines and what subjects would they best represent?
My son Alan for sports and quantum physics. My sister Kim for all around knowledge on many subjects and Larry from work for his vast knowledge on U. S. Presidents.
Last week we had so much fun with Free Association, lets try it again.
We trapped our first groundhog yesterday. We released it about a mile down the road. I don't mind the groundhogs if they stay up on the hill, however they have been digging under our deck and around the foundation. So, they must go. Only two alternatives are available. Trapping or .22 caliber bullet. Since I am a compassionate person we will try trapping first. One down and I believe four more to go.
The big news around these parts today is that Vince Sweeney has been fired by WBRE news. Vince is probably the most recognizable and best liked news media figure in this area. Al and I saw him and his wife just last week at the Back Mountain Library Auction. Without him at WBRE , what measily ratings they had before I foresee them going lower. He served twenty years with WBRE. Goes to show you how far loyalty goes these days. He will always be known for the catch phrase " Vince said it would be like this". I know there is no room over at WNEP weather, but it would be sweet if he could join them in another capacity. I'm especially going to miss the morning segments with Daniels & Webster from Rock 107. Don't worry Vince, bigger and better things are in the future.
In work we are setting up a decent size rubber job in Wilkes-Barre. If you look real close you can actually catch Al working.
This isn't much of an update. I'll post last weeks Friday Five and Look Back Monday.
Friday Five
1. Are you afraid of the dark?
Not really, but I can see some situations that would make it intimidating.
2. What is your favorite flavor of ice-cream?
I guess it would have to be vanilla, though I really like tin roof sundae and cookies & cream.
3. Who did you want to win the World Cup? Italy or France?
Italy. How could anyone root for the cowards of the world.
4. Do you have any bumper stickers on your vehicle? What do they say?
Yes. I have three. 1) Bush/Cheney 2004 2) Support the Troops 3) American Flag with "God Bless America".
5. Name someone you had a crush on when you were a kid?
Marcia Brady and Mary Ann from Gilligan's Island.
Now, Look Back Monday
Bath Time!
This is a photo of my wife Ruth and brother-in-law David probably taken somewhere around 1958 or 59. This is the result of playing in the coal bin.
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Flightplan (Widescreen Edition)
Not a bad movie. I'd probably give it 3 1/2 stars. The first hour kept you guessing whether her daughter was a figment of her imagination or not. Jodie Foster did a better than average performance. All in all, one of the better movies I've seen in awhile. (***)
Fun With Dick & Jane
This is the best film I've seen in a long time, which isn't saying much. Actually, I enjoyed this film. Jim Carrey and Tea Leoni worked well together. It's what a comedy should be, a couple laughs, a decent plot and about ninety minutes long. (***)
Date Movie (Unrated Edition)
What a waste of time. I missed 30 minutes of a Yankee game because of this garbage. It's suppose to be a spoof on romantic comedies in the way that Scary Movie does horror and suspense. It doesn't work. I can't believe the streak of horrible films I've been watching. (*)
The Ice Harvest (Widescreen Edition)
Will I ever see a decent movie again? Not a great one. Just a good one. This is a Harold Ramis film. I don't know if this was supposed to be a comedy or a serious film. I like Billy Bob Thornton, but in this movie ugh! The best part of this film was the bonus feature outtake of Billy Bob clowning around in his Slingblade character. Hollywood is dead. They don't know how to make an entertaining movie anymore. (**)
Grandma's Boy (Unrated Edition)
What did I just watch? A movie without a plot. There was no direction to this movie. A poor rip off of 40 Year Old Virgin. There are many pot jokes in this movie. You would have to be stoned to find this movie funny. Don't waste your time. I don't even know why I gave it two stars. (**)
The Cave (Widescreen Edition)
This is the lowest rated film I've rated yet. The premise for the story had potential. What was wrong with the film? How about the script, acting, sound, direction, etc. The only interesting thing was that Daniel Dae Kim from Lost was in this movie, all be it a small role. Don't waste your time or money on this one. (*)
Dark Water (Unrated Widescreen Edition)
Don't waste your time. Jennifer Connelly's acting was the high point of this film and that is saying a lot since I'm not one of her bigger fans. The story was confusing at best and left a lot of unanswered questions. Scary? No. Suspense? No. If not for Connelly's acting this one would have been my first one star review. (**)
Four Brothers (Widescreen Edition)
A decent movie that is fairly entertaining. Don't know if's worth renting though. Wait for it to come on Starz. (***)
Wedding Crashers - Uncorked (Unrated Widescreen Edition)
I don't know what all the hub-bub was all about with this movie. It was good and I enjoyed it for the most part, but I can only give it three stars. I did think Vince Vaughn was the best part of this movie. (***)
The 40-Year-Old Virgin (Unrated)
Hilarious. Don't ask me why, but I laughed almost all the way through this movie. Silly? Yes, it's a comedy. I cracked up when he makes the phone call about a four hour erection. The only critisism is that it was a little long for a comedy, though I had the extended and unrated version which made it longer than its original release. (****)
Into the Blue
It's probably me, but I couldn't really get into this movie that much, which surprises me because it has a lot of things I like in movies namely sharks, diving, treasure hunting, action and best of all Jessica Alba in a wet bikini most of the film. Like Mr. and Mrs Smith it gets three stars just for that. Maybe if I watched it at a different time my opinion would change. Rent it. Don't buy it. (***)
House of Wax
I was ready to pan this picture before I even watched it. What, with Paris Hilton in it and all. Actually it wasn't all that bad. Even Paris wasn't that annoying in her small role. The acting could have been better, especially at the beginning. (***)
Bewitched
It is what it is. A movie re-make of an old TV show. Not terrible. Not great. An entertaining way to blow two hours. (***)
Cinderella Man
One of the best films I've seen in awhile. Russell Crowes best performance yet! Paul Giamatti should receive an Oscar for his performance as Braddock's manager Joe Gould. This DVD sat on my desk over a week before I finally decided too watch it. That was a mistake on my part. (****)
The Amityville Horror
Has its moments. Remake of the original 1979 film. Fast paced. Approx. 90 minute runtime which is perfect for a horror film. (***)
The Exorcism of Emily Rose
Courtroom drama meets horror film. A pretty good film actually. The courtroom scenes can be a bit drawn out, but the mix seems to work. I would give this three and a half stars. Jennifer Carpenter was outstanding in the role of Emily Rose. (***)
Serenity (Widescreen Edition)
If you're not a sci-fi fan you may not like this film. For myself however, I loved this film. It is based on the short lived television series Firefly. I never watched the TV show, but after watching this movie I immediately ordered the complete series from Netflix. (****)
The Skeleton Key (Full Screen Edition)
This film is okay if you watch it on a cold, windy and snowy night and you have absolutely nothing else to do. I would have given it two and a half stars if I could. The story seems to drag along and the supposed twist ending is pretty predictable. I have seen people who have given this film five stars. They must have been under the spell of some Hoo-doo. (***)
The Island
Not as bad as I thought it would be considering the reviews it received.
The chase scenes were drawn out. I think that is all Hollywood knows what to do anymore. They certainly can't come up with anything original. (***)
Mr. and Mrs. Smith
A fairly entertaining movie. Of course the film would have still gotten three stars even if I muted the sound and just watched Angelina Jolie run around. (***)
