Snap, Crackle and Pop

Man of the Week: Zach Levi

Wed, 02 Dec 2009 14:13:31 GMT

New on TMR

Wed, 02 Dec 2009 13:01:25 GMT

11:56 Iron Man shares the stage with War Machine on new poster: bit.ly/7jpF8n #
12:24 Cage and Perlman battle the SEASON OF THE WITCH: bit.ly/8cvud0 #
14:41 JONAH HEX doesn't equal a comic book movie...: bit.ly/7iqwZr #
14:41 Third NARNIA flick gets a trio of new pics: bit.ly/65Ej2n #
14:41 CLASH OF THE TITANS hits high def March 2: bit.ly/7dk7NI #
16:27 New HARRY POTTER 7.1 pic: bit.ly/6GwNnt #
17:23 Trailers for EXAM, TOY STORY 3 and NINE: bit.ly/7FegFr #

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Tue, 01 Dec 2009 13:01:47 GMT

21:08 Duncan takes charge of THE SLAMMIN' SALMON: bit.ly/92mJki #
22:23 BREAKING POINT busts into the theater December 4: bit.ly/7eZQGr #

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Tue, 01 Dec 2009 01:16:46 GMT

It may be just coincidence or the universe having a sense of humor. Either way, the fact REM's "It's the End of the World as We Know It" was the first song on to play on the iPod after I left work is entirely appropriate for how most people would construe what happened today.

The short version, and some of you know this already. I was let go. I can't say I'm entirely surprised by this turn of events, to be honest. Sometimes my gut is right and sometimes it's wrong. But that's beside the fact. Being susceptible to a bad economy is a fact of life today, let alone in a small business. I harbor no ill feelings toward anyone involved. In fact, knowing I have a positive referral should a new employer want one is an incredibly good feeling.

When I was out of a job last time, there were a lot of things working against me. A large house payment. Big credit cards. This time, I think I'll be able to get through this thing much better than before. Why? The CC's are always kept at a $0 balance. I have no rent payment. All my doctor appointments are up to date, with a supply of contacts through August, 2010 and a clean bill of dental health until May. I'll be applying for unemployment in the morning, just to get that entire ball rolling. The plan is to bank as much of that as possible, cutting back on most things.

Please note: this doesn't mean I'm ditching Saturday movies. I will need some human interaction, ya know. My weekly transfers to the ING account and HSA will continue. That money is earmarked for a house and I'll be damned if I'm going to tap into it if I don't have to.

What about work? Well, I'm almost certain to be kicking up TMR again as a news and review blog, now that I have more time. I applied to a job last week and another one today. A couple more are sitting in my inbox awaiting a resume. We all know what I want to do. Maybe this is the kick in the pants I need to actually take a risk and move, provided a job materializes.

Anyway, just wanted everyone to know the deal. I'm nothing if not 100% transparent. Besides, knowing I didn't do anything wrong in this context is a good thing.

Because Sharing is Caring

Mon, 30 Nov 2009 17:59:10 GMT

Because I don't have the capacity to screen cap every episode of the Race, brotherflounder sent this to me this morning.

Under the cut not for unsafe content, but rather size.

Trek Trivia Monday: The Next Generation Season One Edition

Mon, 30 Nov 2009 14:59:35 GMT

EDITED TO CLARIFY...

Again, all answers will be screened until tomorrow morning to give everyone a fair chance. All questions will revolve around the first season of The Next Generation.

1. This tactical maneuver occurred three times on the television series and twice in this season. Name the maneuver and the episodes it is featured in.

2. Season One began a parade of recurring characters who would be seen over the course of the seven television seasons. These character all have official names spoken on the show (meaning no stand-ins or extras). There are nine to my count. Name five.

3. TNG and DS9 share a unique broadcast distinction in the Trek universe. What is it?

4. This character was the first main character of a Trek show to be killed and not return in the normal Trek reality.

5. An early promotional shot of the cast on the Planet Hell set left this character off.

6. "The Naked Now" is an homage to which original series installment?

7. Despite being name dropped in "Encounter at Farpoint," this major Trek alien species would be first seen in "The Last Outpost."

8. The Enterprise-D went through a slew of chief engineer's prior to Geordi LaForge being named to the post in season 2. There should be four named chief engineer's from the first season. Name them.

9. The blue-skinned Bolians would first be seen in this season, though they would not gain the formal "Bolian" name until season 3. Who is this species named after?

10. This episode is the only one in the first season which does not have a spoken stardate.

New on TMR

Mon, 30 Nov 2009 13:01:18 GMT

17:58 DVD Review: CRIME WAVE: 18 MONTHS OF MAYHEM: bit.ly/8KSXHI #

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Fri, 27 Nov 2009 13:01:11 GMT

20:12 Movie Review: LIONS FOR LAMBS: bit.ly/75ofvA #

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Thu, 26 Nov 2009 04:22:51 GMT

I realize there are things and people I don't talk about a lot here. In fact, I don't talk about them in real life, either. Sure, you're apt to find any number of issues throughout this journal, some private, some not. Rants and raves, happy and sad, high and low. In that regard, I think I'm a rather open person. After all, ask me a question and you'll get the most honest answer in the world. It might not be short-as some people can attest to-but it will be honest.

But there is one thing I don't talk about. That's my maternal grandfather. There are two times of the year I really fight with myself not to think about him: Thanksgiving/Christmas and April. Why those two times? Well, this time of year I'm often reminded about what I don't have or wish I did have. In a way, I think if he was still here, I'd have those things I want. And he died in April, 1986. Both my grandfathers died in that month, actually, making it more than a bit tough to get through.

He died when I was 7-years-old, right on our living room couch. The story is that he didn't want to go in a small apartment here he and my grandmother lived. He wanted to be in the middle of everything with people coming and going. Now, you have to understand, this man would come and get me every Saturday morning. We'd go out to the track, to OTB, shopping...it didn't matter what we did. We went to Disney World every Thanksgiving. There were times I spent more time with him and my grandmother than my parents.

And I loved it. I was the only kid in the family and got all the attention by default. He was strong, respected, loved, friendly. I still remember the peaches he used to eat in the car, the way he would roll the pit up into the napkin and set it on the dashboard. The air fresheners he put in the car. The way I sat between the driver and passenger without a seatbelt. The moth balls they used in the cushions of their furniture. And a million other things I'm afraid of losing with the passage of time. One year, he helped me wrap a cigar cylinder in medical tape, write a little bit about putting money away for Lisa's Christmas present and stuffed it with dimes. I still have that cylinder in my file cabinet. It long ago lost it's cigar smell...but it is one of the few tangible things I have of him.

I also have a Return of the Jedi wallet he got for me. Over the years, my grandmother has dispersed the cash that was in his wallet when he died. It's been a while since I've been in there, but I think there are two $2 bills. A toy truck he got for me from the corner store. A cowboy hat that hasn't fit me in decades from Monmouth Race Track. These things are treasures to me. Why? Because he touched them, there is a part of him in all these things. Yes, they're objects, but they bring me back to him.

He was the glue, I think, that held my family together. No matter the fight, if he was around, everything would be alright. In my mind, whatever schism there was between my mother and grandmother would not exist because he would have put it all right a long time ago. And, by extension, the problems I have with my parents would not exist because he'd be on my side...and my mother adored him.

The morning he died-he had cancer-I remember like a slide show. Maybe. I'm not even sure I remember these things versus making them up in my mind to fill in the narrative. What I do remember is the toy my parents let me bring to school that day. He-Man's Attack Track. It's funny the stuff you remember. My grandmother will say he knew it was snowing when the curtains were closed. I don't know if that's true. What I can say with near certainty is I was not allowed to go the funeral.

Looking back on it, I don't know if I was angry or not. But now, when I do think about it, I get both angry and depressed. Why? Because I was old enough to watch him die on the living room couch but not old enough to go to a funeral? What shit is that? I'm sure the rationalization was I needed to go to school or something like that. Even looking back on it with biased perspective, I can't justify the decision. Not one bit. If memory serves, I spent the time with my aunt's mother. Thinking about it, that's what it had to be. I wouldn't have had a reason to be with her unless the rest of my family was indisposed.

When I worked at Kroger back in high school, I swore I saw a man who looked exactly like him. My heart literally stopped as my mind tried to process it. Could it...was it...how...why... A thousand thoughts ran though my head. Had they been lying to me for basically my entire life? There's no feeling like thinking someone who is gone is back. And then having that ripped away again. It's a cruel joke. When I think of all the things I could have learned from him over the last 23 years or so, all the conversations we should have had, all the things we should have shared, I want to rage at the world. I want to pound anything I can find, tell everyone to go to hell and then curl up in the corner and cry until I can't anymore.

Maybe that's selfish. After all, Lisa and Stephanie had very little time with him. Pete and Nick had none. At least I have those memories. None of it is fair. For the longest time, as a kid, I hated to hear someone say their grandfather would be at a school function or a holiday gathering. I felt like they were rubbing it in when, really, they weren't.

A few weeks ago, I was reading Topless Robot's list of 10 cool Disney attractions that were closed. On our last Disney trip, my grandfather said we'd be going to see The Living Seas next year. We never made that trip because he got too sick. And when I read TLS was gone, I wanted to scream. How dare they take it away? One of the last things I have of him. How dare you replace something like TLS with what had to be a second-rate commercial tie in no one cared about? How dare Disney not keep things the exact way I remember them to make me feel better?

If you ever wonder why I use the "P." in my name when other people don't bother with the middle initial, you now have the answer. It's my way of honoring him every single day. I've been told it's arrogant, makes me look "high" on myself. And know what? I don't fucking care. Not one goddamn bit. My middle name is Peter after my grandfather. I need to remember where I came from and the people who made me who I am today.

To me, right now, in 2009, he is the perfect man. I don't need to hear about rose colored glasses or the "truth." This is the way I need to remember him, to think about what might have happened if he didn't die. Because it would utterly devastate me to even entertain the notion he would be anything but 100% supportive of his grandkids.

Man of the Week: Chris Hemsworth

Wed, 25 Nov 2009 14:29:03 GMT

I was inspired by watching Star Trek last night...

New on TMR

Wed, 25 Nov 2009 13:01:30 GMT

20:41 DVD Review: VAMPIRE PARTY: bit.ly/8ZZuZW #

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Oh...Wow...

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 15:13:28 GMT

I used to do this quite regularly and then completely stopped...

November 24:

Angels and Demons (in Netflix queue)
Superman: The Complete Animated Series
My Bloody Valentine 3-D (in Netflix queue)

December 1:

The Boy with Sun in His Eyes (in Netflix queue)
Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian (in Netflix queue)
Paper Heart (in Netflix queue)
The Mask of Zorro (Blu-ray)
The Proposal (in Netflix queue)

December 8:

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (Blu-ray, pre-ordered)
Hollywood, je t'aime (in Netflix queue)
Home Movie (Review Title)
Julie & Julia (Blu-ray)
LOST: The Complete Fifth Season (Blu-ray)
Redwoods (Review Title)
Shank (Review Title)
The Skeptic (Review Title)
World's Greatest Dad (in Netflix queue)
Crime Wave: 18 Months of Mayhem (Review Title)

December 15:

Rise and Fall of the Berlin Wall (Review Title)
Lucky Bastard (in Netflix queue)
Taking Woodstock (in Netflix queue)
Star Trek: The Original Series Season 3 (Blu-ray, pre-ordered)

December 22:

(500) Days of Summer (in Netflix queue)
Staten Island, New York (Review Title)

December 29:

9 (in Netflix queue)
A Perfect Getaway (in Netflix queue)

Because Sharing is Caring

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 17:39:10 GMT

Yes, I'm going back to the tried and true cute homo pictures again. Sue me. Did ya'll really want boring reposts of Hawkman from Smallville or the Absolute Justice trailer?

I didn't think so.

Trek Trivia Monday: Learning Curve

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 15:44:35 GMT

1. "Learning Curve" was not meant to be the first season finale of Voyager. Which episode was designed as the end of the first season?

2. A number of episodes produced for the first season were held until the second so UPN could start the season early. Name the four episodes.

3. Which of the four Maquis crewmen in Tuvok's boot camp would be seen again in televised Trek?

4. The beginning of the episode features Captain Janeway participating in a "holonovel." In the show's fourth season, a new recurring holonovel would be introduced with which real-life historical character?

5. Voyager is one of the first vessels equipped with this kind of technology, brought to its knees by Neelix's cheese.

6. Thomas Dekker has played two characters in Trek: Thomas Picard in Generations and Henry Burleigh in Voyager. He is best known for his role on what other, now canceled, series?

7. Director David Livingston shares his name with what Trek animal?

8. The original UPN trailer for this episode implores the audience to do two things. What are they?

9. What race attacks the crewmen in the holodeck simulation?

10. By what percentage did Tuvok increase the gravity for the "death march" run?

New on TMR

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 13:00:57 GMT

16:38 Movie Review: ONCE: bit.ly/4zPRAQ #

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Mon, 23 Nov 2009 00:57:40 GMT

Hooked the new TV up last and threw the end of Star Trek on...

And then I handed the camera to Jim...

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Sun, 22 Nov 2009 13:00:47 GMT

19:06 Movie Review: 2012: bit.ly/65AXIx #

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Sat, 21 Nov 2009 13:00:48 GMT

09:09 @retaliashun nope, that's another on the list. I have seen The Magnificent Ferengi... :D #
10:10 DVD REVIEW: FARSCAPE: THE COMPLETE SERIES: tinyurl.com/ygecdf5 #

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Fri, 20 Nov 2009 13:01:17 GMT

10:06 @retaliashun Not yet. Magnificent Seven is first up at slot 6, Palindromes is at 20. #

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Fact Checking the Idiots

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 16:44:07 GMT

Okay, maybe I should just leave certain things alone, but I'm tired of people not fact checking and debunking, when needed, sheer stupidity. This comes from an e-mail I received this morning. (My research and comments in GREEN.)

In a word, every last word here is bullshit...hogwash...utter stupidity... Shocking, isn't it? Well, not really, but I thought I'd try.

If you do come across this e-mail from a friend or family member, feel free to use the links I found to fact check and set people straight. Hell, send them here and we can have a nice fight about it. The only editing I've done it changed a dark blue to lighter blue (looked like crap on a dark background, scaled down the text and removed some blank lines.)

I AM HONORED TO DO THIS !!

Did you know that the ACLU has filed a suit to have all military cross-shaped headstones removed

*****Only, they haven't. According to this, gravestones do not constitute a government endorsement of religion. They have asked, though, for the Wiccan pentacle to be added to the list of approved religious symbols.*****

and another suit to end prayer from the military completely. They're making great progress. The Navy Chaplains can no longer mention Jesus' name in prayer thanks to the wretched ACLU and our new administration.

</span>*****Oh, wrong again. The ACLU sent a letter to the Naval Academy asking that midshipmen be given the choice to either pray or not pray during noon meal.*****

*****The Jesus thing is wrong, too. The man at the center of the story, former Navy Chaplain Gordon J. Klingenschmitt, was court martialed for disobeying a direct order, not for using Jesus in prayer.*****

I'm not breaking this one.

*****Maybe some of my military friends can correct me if I'm wrong, but this is a salute to mourn a fallen friend. The implication here is, I think, a Nazi salute. Rather insulting, don't you think?*****

If I get it a 1000 times, I'll forward it a 1000 times!

Let us pray...

Prayer chain for our Military... Don't break it!

Please send this on after a short prayer. Prayer for our soldiers Don't break it!
Prayer:

'Lord, hold our troops in your loving hands Protect them as they protect us Bless them and their families for the selfless acts they perform for us in our time of need. Amen.'

Prayer Request: When you receive this, please stop for a moment and say a prayer for our troops around the world.

There is nothing attached. Just send this to people in your address book. Do not let it stop with you. Of all the gifts you could give a Marine, Soldier, Sailor, Airman, & others deployed in harm's way, prayer is the very best one.
GOD BLESS YOU FOR PASSING IT ON!

Movie Trivia Thursday: Beauty and the Beast

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 14:50:22 GMT

Note: Per a suggestion last week, I will be screening comments so everyone has a fair (ie. not tempted to cheat) shot. Comments will be unscreened tomorrow morning at the same time the correct answers go live. Oh yeah, I'll be taking another Thursday off next week for Turkey Day...

1. Beauty and the Beast was the third most successful movie of 1991, money wise, with $145 million in domestic revenue alone. Which two movies surpassed it on the domestic box office chart in 1991?

2. This film was the "first" for the Academy Awards in many ways. It was the first animated film to be nominated for Best Picture. It was also the first picture to ever get three Best Song Oscar nominations: "Belle," "Be Our Guest" and "Beauty and the Beast." Only three other films can claim this hat trick of Best Song nominations. Name them.

3. There are two direct-to-video sequels to this film. Name them.

4. Beauty and the Beast is dedicated to this man with the following: To our Friend _______, who gave a mermaid her voice and a beast his soul, we will be forever grateful.

5. The ballroom sequence was used as part of the promotion for which 2002 Disney film?

6. Four voice actors in Beauty and the Beast have entered the Star Trek universe as flesh and blood characters. Name them.

7. What song was deleted from the original theatrical version of the movie but reinserted in the Special Edition?

8. Out of all the objects in the film, this is the only one who mentions Belle by name.

9. The finale, featuring Belle and the prince, is actually reused animation from which previous Disney film?

10. This is the second Disney film to use a proprietary system for the entire production. Name the first film to use CAPS for the whole film.

Man of the Week: Cheyenne Jackson

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 15:09:35 GMT

Note: Mr. Jackson comes from ghstlght74 . If you don't like him, take it up with Greg. :D

New on TMR

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 13:01:18 GMT

16:16 Blu-ray Review: MOONSHOT: bit.ly/3F5cwI #
17:46 Movie Review: THE NUMBER 23: bit.ly/3Uc10E #

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Tue, 17 Nov 2009 13:01:19 GMT

16:47 DVD Review: RETHINK AFGHANISTAN: bit.ly/22DxJM #

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Sat, 14 Nov 2009 01:11:47 GMT

So, onto Graceland...

Front of the building

The Living Room

Dining Room Chandelier...yes, I'm THAT gay

Some jackass bumped me in the Dining Room

The TV Room...the man had three TV's back before most people had 1!

Dad Vernon's office out back

Formerly the Racquetball Room...now with awards of all kinds

One compartment on the plane "Lisa Marie"