Foo Fighters - Rope

This is there first single off their new album. I'm a bit bias on this subject, but I can't wait for the album's release (April 12). The whole album was done in low res. stuff Like this video, shot in -gasp- VHS... yep, can you imagine? The video and song are good, maybe not their best but still pretty good. More to come, no doubt.

Well Then... Maybe TMI, But Nice To Know...

I Was Going to Post About My Trip

But traveling from Bluffton to Atlanta and back is really a bit too much... I'll post on that later. I hope everyone is having a good Spring Break...

Blogs Are A Lot Like Assholes...

There is a problem with blogging about national problems, mianly that you can talk about it until you are blue in the face (that is from either side) it won't change a thing. It doesn't matter if you are a union supporter or follow a free market mentality... you getting online and voicing your opinion won't change squat.

Sometimes if you call your representative, be it in state or national, then it might make a difference. But jumping on a newspaper website and decrying Obamacare or what you think is wrong about the Wisconsin Governor... gets nothing at all accomplished, besides making you feel better. But more likely than not you will be too busy defending your stance from the opposition, who will never change his/her mind, no matter how hard you try to enjoy yourself. Both are idiots (that being the opposition and you), and both think they put the other in his/her place. Aint it grand?

So I might suggest that you, the proverbial you, think for just a minute, and put your strength and energy into something that you can change. Do what you like, which I am going to go out on a limb here... It probably isn't arguing with someone over the internet. Find the things you might agree on. If you know something isn't getting the attention it should, focus on that. I think debate is good and necessary, but on matters of national importance, not really. talk to your elected officials, and let them do what we elected them to do. If they won't listen or hold the opposition's viewpoint, work on getting someone who will take your point of view.

It is so easy to jump online and be the critic to each and every comment. It is so much harder to actually be the person taking in all points of view, and making a decision based on that. Harder still to take it to a national level. But anyone running for a particular office should know this. You "could" find yourself being a critic, and if you are ask if you really know the particular problem, the options available, and the best way to fix it. Then get ready for the onslaught of people ready to tear you limb from limb. That is why I don't so much comment on national happenings.

I used to be a critic of the school district. And I do from time to time, have some snarky things to say about a particular subject. I don't do that too much anymore. But like I said if you do, then know what is wrong and know how to fix it, and then suggest this to your elected official... otherwise you like to look foolish or you might want to keep your mouth shut.

The Mother of Vacations

Way back when... something like 1981 or `82... My mother went on a road trip, all the way from New Orleans to San Diego. Quite a trip in those days, I pause to think about it even today. So why were we going to San Diego? To pick up my step-father, who had joined the Navy and then decided that he didn't want to be in the Navy anymore. He lasted maybe 2-3 weeks. But anyway, we got one hell of a road trip out of the deal.

We packed our Datsun B210 hatchback, which was an upgrade from the `70's Volkswagen Beetle we used to run around town in... literally, jammed it full of things: ice chest, blankets, suitcases... we looked like the Clampetts or at least felt like them. It was a completely different time than what we find today. I had to hide in the car every time we stopped for the night, because my mother was afraid of being charged more for one adult and child, versus just for an adult. I might have been forced to wait in the car needlessly, but seriously, I was sweating my ass off, I don't want that to be for nothing.

We took I-10 pretty much the whole way. It was a long slough, especially Texas. I mean it just keeps going and going and going and going again. It makes you appreciate just how big Texas is if nothing else. Getting into New Mexico and Arizona (my mother has a brother that lives in Phoenix) breaks up the monotony, and the scenery changes a bit from scrub-land to a more cactus like desert. Neither of which you would want to be broke down in, but still. We saw my uncle who was really cool, but that was the only time I have ever seen him... his wife is crazy, even he admits it (she is a Jesus freak...) . So from Phoenix, San Diego is just a hop, skip, and jump away... Although really, who would have thunk it that a boy from the westbank of New Orleans would have ever had this opportunity, I certainly didn't.

We pick up my step-dad and then continue on to see some sights. We went to the San Diego Zoo, up the coast to Universal Hollywood and took a tour, we also went to Disneyland (and at that time I was not impressed... Many rides were out of commission I don't think the early 80's were a good time for Disney) and then up to San Francisco with finishing California off by camping in Yosemite... and nearly being eaten by a bear... Why? Because we were stupid, I think I can look back at my life and you know the things that common sense tells you to do, and somehow you do otherwise and you live anyway? Yeah that is me.

The rest of the trip is sort of a blur. We did stop at Hoover Dam, which was and is pretty cool. I think we did more driving in less time, with 2 adults now able to swap off driving duty. And plus I never liked my step-dad much. He was an abusive alcoholic, and you really never knew what kind of mood he was going to be in. Maybe everything was fine, maybe the next seconds he was getting a blow torch and threatening to burn everything in your room if you didn't clean it up (in his defense, my room was chronically messy) but I did enjoy my road trip with my mom, and it was to be the only one I would take, before my younger sisters and brother came along.

Still an incredible journey. One I think back on every time I plan to go on a trip and to think if I would have stayed home with my dad, and went to school, well I wouldn't have had nearly as much fun or life experiences. So my recommendation to any who come upon the option to take a trip or not... go ahead and take the trip. It could be the worst thing you ever did, it might be the best, but either way it will make memories. Me and my mom joke about it to this day.

Vacation!!!

So I know I didn't exactly advertise this. Not so much because it was last minute, but because we had literally too much other shit going on... I failed to mention it. Today (Saturday) we make a mini-vacation by getting into our minivan and driving up to Atlanta. While there we will get the CityPass, and enjoy everything on it... Zoo, Aquarium, Coke, CNN, Fernbank Museum of Natural History. It will be 4 days of us being tourists. I will of course have some pictures and whatnot to share.

We feel like we really need the time to just let our hair down. Taxes and job interviews and just stressed out in general... it will be nice to get away. But it is only temporary. We did wonder... should we go the beach route or someplace like Atlanta route. I figured we will have plenty of time to go to the beach once it warms up, Atlanta, nobody wants to be in Atlanta when it is 95+ degrees outside. At least that was my lopsided reasoning. For now, if you are reading this on Saturday, I am already gone, probably on I-16...

Classic Film Friday: Romancing the Stone

Joan Wilder (Kathleen Turner) is an author, she writes about love and romance. But she gets a phone call from her sister, Elaine (Mary Ellen Trainor) begging her to come to Columbia as she has been kidnapped. She has sent Joan a map, and if she brings it to Columbia, she can use it as ransom. What happens next is a bit of miscommunication and "fish out of water" circumstances. Until Joan meets Colonel Zolo (Manuel Ojeda) who Joan at first trusts but quickly discovers he is not a nice guy at all.

As Zolo is about to kill Joan on the side of a Colombian road, Jack Colton (Michael Douglas) comes along and unwittingly gets into a fire fight with Zolo. Joan hires Jack to get her to where her sister is, but the two fall in love and we are treated to a swashbuckling adventure. With Danny DeVito playing the comic relief as he is a part of the team that kidnapped her sister. His name is Ralph.

Well it all seems like it will be ok, Joan gets her sister back Jack got paid... that is until everyone comes back together for a massive gun fight... including a tug of war with an alligator. It is a movie from the 80's through and through. Joan has a new story to write about, and Jack now has the boat he has been saving up for (he won the tug of war with the alligator... eventually) and they "sail" off together.

I Think I'm Going... Ok, I'm going

I mean why not right? It has been all over FaceBook. Basically, they are showing a movie, then after the movie they are beaming in a live concert in 3-D. You say "WHAT?" Yep, I can't imagine any other band has taken on this kind of thing. This may be the closest I ever come to seeing the band play live. Still it does cost 45 bucks for two tickets, but I think it is a fair price to pay to see them play sorta live... maybe.

Muse = Dr Who???

I know this really doesn't make sense, but this song by Muse (who I happened to hear on Pandora) sounds a whole lot like Dr Who. See what you think... Anyway, this is an older song, from 2009, enjoy.


Muse - Uprising by WBRNewMedia

Well Since You Put It That Way...

End of Times?

It seems these are trying times. But are they any different than any other time? I went a lookin' just to see. I picked random years just to see if this was really bad. Here is what I came up with.

1989

Communism falls- Republican rejioce... sorta, it happened while they were in power so...

Hurricane Hugo hits (as a category 4 storm) Charleston and is felt all the way to the Upstate.

Tiananmen Square the rise of pro-democracy students, was crushed killing hundreds maybe thousands.

Pan Am Flight 103 (really happened in `88 but I figured since it happened in December to count it) 270 people died.

Exxon Valdez oil spill

The death of Lucille Ball. (Hey I saw it, so I had to put it up here)

Savings and Loan Bailout

1971

Apollo XIV Lands On Moon

Mount Etna Erupts After 43 Years of dormancy

Nixon ends trade embargo with China

Charles Manson and his followers are sentenced to death

Ok I looked enough. Basically there were a few more years I tried and some were pretty good, other were riddled with tragedy and despair. I think just like a friend told me long ago, he said "long time ago we had tornadoes, I could see them bounce from mountain top to mountain top. Today those mountain tops have houses on them, whereas they used to only have trees on them way back when." This was his sage advise to me while I lived in Northeastern Georgia. We are a much more populated planet today, thus when a tragedy happens the propensity is to affect many more people.

So what do I do with all of this? Not much of nothing. You are forced to live in the times you are given. Make the best rather than the worst. Make sure you are right to whatever deity to which you subscribe. Make sure you are doing the right thing whenever possible. But if you can't or won't make sure you go down in infamy. At least that is what I am doing. I don't want to be infamous, so I try to live to the best of my ability. But if that were to change, if I wanted to be remembered for some sort of crazy, hair-brained, ludicrous act... I would make sure it was the craziest, most hair-brained, ludicrous-est act out there, otherwise it would not workout.

That is why I prefer to live on the right side of the law, pay my taxes on time, be a good citizen... even when I know that jerk purposely cut me off going down the Bluffton Parkway. I am loved by important people... my parents, my siblings, my kids, and most importantly (because it is the only one you choose) my wife. I didn't mean to sound like a soliloquy on my final moments or my own epitaph. But you just never know when your time is coming. And when I sit down and really think about it, there are some things I wish I could change, some I would leave as is, some things I wish I would have had the courage to do, and some I wish I would have not. We are who we are. I'm ok with that. End days a coming? Some might say it is true, others not so much... but in the end who cares? What can you do about it? How can you change it? And why would you change it anyway?         

Roller-Coaster

So the school district in it's infinite wisdom has backed up a bit. They are still cutting literacy coaches by 50% but for any school that has over 650 students they get to keep their full time coach. Well except they are making all people go through the interview process. And they actually want as part of the interview process the interviewee to give a class to "teachers" (Principals and District Admin) and judge each person and then give them (or not) a job to whichever school.

That sounds a little crazy, because it is. My wife only wants to work where she is at now. If someone else wants her, she will simply back away and take a regular teacher job. Remember, the pay is the same, other than getting more responsibility, it is a bit of a thankless job. Well I say that, but honestly, she gets rewarded from all around. Teachers, kids, principals, parents even... So how will this roller-coaster ride end?

Well I guess we will see... I keep telling my wife, that it doesn't really matter, but we all know that it does matter. It matters to my wife. And so there you go. It reminds me of a Coolio song... Fantastic Voyage. Why? Because the district is making all of these demands, for what? Nothing I think. Which is the point of the video... is it a dream or is it real? My wife got the job... She should have, but anyway, things are mellow, at least until the next budget meeting...


Coolio - Fantastic Voyage by Drunken-Li-Dragon

See This?

I have to give it to her, Augustus loves to make people laugh. Here she was... sick, feeling crappy, and sticking her ear thermometer up her nose. She is like that. Hopefully she will find ways to make us all chuckle when she is better.

No Movie Today

My baby, Augustus has had 9 ear infections since she has been born. She is 17 months old.  That puts us (doing the quick math) going to the doctor every other month... I'm all about making money, but good god this has to stop. She is sick with another ear infection. I'm sure big pharma and doctors love to see me coming. I'm ready for tubes. We have an appointment made. There is no movie this week, for the above reason. Sorry.

Michael Franti & Spearhead - The Sound Of Sunshine

This is a tune from last year, but it works with the coming out of the cold set... I think it is spring down here now. The temps have warmed up, and there is copious amounts of pollen outside. How about "The Sound of Sunshine"?

Or It Could Be Nothing At All

NFL = Nothing

So I guess this year will be just like 1987 season??? I don't like it, but I'm not one who is either on the owner's or player's side. I just want to see some football. I can only hope that this all gets figured out soon and we don't have any games missed. Otherwise I guess I'll become a fan of bowling or strongman competitions. It is kind of sad, especially when you have a team (the Saints) that is pretty good, and you think they might go all the way again... that is if they get all of this lockout business straightened out.

It's Time

Ah that lovely time of year where the clocks must change... How I hate it. For one thing, try telling little kids... to go to sleep, yes yesterday at this time you still had an hour to go but today, you must go to bed an hour earlier. Why? Because you have to wake up an hour earlier too. If you ever had kids, you can sympathize. Once everything gets settled it is all good, but I can't help but wonder why we do this to ourselves in the first place. I know, I know... way back when we were a more agrarian culture, this made sense. But we aren't really picking tomatoes or feeding chickens anymore, or at least not like we used to.  And it seems farmers don't care either way.

And there is for me the changing the times on each and every piece of equipment that has a clock on it... NOT fun. But it is what it is. I don't want to live in Arizona (the only place that does not change with the rest of us) so I deal. I know down here we need to think about kids catching the school bus and whatnot, but still I bitch about switching the time, because the whole process seems so stupid. And I am not alone.

So I hope you listened, set your clocks ahead, otherwise you may be late this morning. Ah, isn't it lovely?

Turkeys!!! ... Again

I woke up to the songbird, talking to the turkeys... yeah not really, but she did (rather loudly) say hey, look turkeys! But something strange happened. There was a buzzard in the mix (not pictured, he flew away while I got the camera) and the turkeys were trying to fight with it. Right there in my backyard. The buzzard apparently had enough and flew away, though I have no idea why it was there to begin with.

Yep, this must be at or close to mating season. You can see the boys are all pumped up, showing their feathers and generally strutting around.

Here we see it was time to go, no more looking at turkeys. And thus the turkey flew away, although, not so much the males. The females took to the air, while the males were willing to just walk/run a short distance. Male ego involved? Maybe.

Didn't Feel a Thing...

I was crashing (in other words, my blood sugar was extremely low) the other day... and usually I can feel it. I get light headed, and I think I am very funny, my wife can't stand this as a low blood sugar is nothing to laugh at (of course she is right). Other times I become agitated easily. Neither was the case on this night. I went low (37 to be exact) and it can be because I took to much insulin and/or I did not eat enough carbohydrates or I misjudged who many carbs was in whatever I ate. Typically it is the later that always trips me up.

So anyway the only reason I knew I was crashing is because I was reading email and understood none of it. It might as well have been written in Chinese. Except I could make out that there were words, and could put them together as sentences, but I had absolutely no idea what was being said. It was at this point I took my blood sugar, saw that it was low, nudged my wife (god bless her) out of bed and told her I was low. She got me a bowl of cereal.

And I'm alive today because of her. And I know I probably don't show enough appreciation toward her, but I really like being alive, and so I thank her. And as for the crash with no feeling... I guess for now on if I read something but cannot make any sense out of it, that will have to be a "feeling".

Classic Film Friday: Top Secret!

This movie is sort of like Airplane! it is made by the same folks, but anyway it stars a very young Val Kilmer (in his big screen debut) who plays Nick Rivers a rock and roll boy from the USA, a sort of Elvis if you will. And he has been booked by the East German government to do a show. Yeah it is like that. The movie makes absolutely no sense at all, but that is a good thing, heck they even say it in the preview. Kilmer did really sing the songs, so it has that going for it and it has spoof after spoof. So if you want to see some 80's style footage, complete with east German antics (we were worried about them in the 80's right?) give this one a try.

Anberlin - Impossible

This is their actual video. I like it done live above better. Why? Maybe I'm turned off by the "done-ness" of their studio-production. Anyway, either way, there you go...I'll give them credit for their video bellow, with all those "balls"... but as for actual music... The top one is better in my opinion. Your mileage may vary.

Those Jeans Are Kind of Gay Anyway

Mardi Gras... Again

A little Mardi Gras, for all of us working slobs that can't get time off...

Happy Mardi Gras!!!

Yeah... I know... Nobody really cares. That is unless you are an ex-patriot of New Orleans. But still I know they are having fun down there. How II wish I could be blogging live on location... But honestly, if that were possible, the last thing I would do is blog about it. I'd be to busy having fun. Drinking, maybe smoking, laughing, looking at all the craziness pass me by (like the drag queens and strippers) I also know that by now they (the locals) are ready to move on.

I went to Publix to get my king cake. It just didn't taste very good. I made me a pot of jambalaya, and I put too much pepper in it, only I and the teenager could stomach it. I guess like the Saints, it just wasn't my year, or time. I keep promising the Songbird that I will take to New Orleans her for her birthday (which sometimes corresponds along with Mardi Gras) but I'm wondering... how exactly I'm going to pull that one off. I hope it won't be too long but... it might. You know they don't let off from school around here for a holiday celebrated 800 miles away. So that means we would have her be absent (as well as my wife) and that isn't kosher.

Then I think about everything we would see. The sights, the smells, it was good enough for me... but I grew up around all of that. I mean we yearly got a spot called the "Back Door" (a gay bar) and you could sit back and enjoy lip syncing and costume contests. But for a sweet little innocent girl, who may get mauled by a crowd for some beads or a cup, or some drawers? That I don't know. I wish I could be there, but I'm scared, that once around all of that, I may realize all too quickly that it is not all it is cracked up to be.

Luckily for me, I will not be able to afford to go for some time. So I guess I will worry about all of the rest when the time comes. And remember, the very next day is the beginning of Lent. Go get the ashes in the form of a cross on your forehead, so everyone knows you are a good catholic.

Unions

There has been much said on unions lately. I think everyone must remember, how you are brought up will depend on whether you support the union or think it is a waste. I think many people get hung up on the specifics, and maybe rightly so because one slip up and it could change everything. Everyone has an agenda. Everyone. Even me I guess.

My father worked union jobs in the late 70's/early 80's. He got a union pension. It was laughably low, like here is $20,000 to $40,000 for your trouble, this included many jobs that were not-union and he had to pay union dues all the while. Also I have never had a job where I found myself belonging to a union So, my experience with unions is pretty limited. But anyway I can maybe sense their need, although I have never found any reason to be a part of one. Does that mean I'm anti-union? Hardly but I can't see a reason to make a big fuss. If I didn't like being what I am right now, I would move or be something else.

I think you have to be adaptable in today's work environment. Don't get too comfortable, be willing to move, and as always hope for the best. I hope that everyone that is in a union wants and needs the same thing that non-union people want. I think that is the way it is supposed to be... I really don't know. I do know the struggles of the textile workers here in South Carolina , I also know there are no more textile jobs here. They can make them cheaper overseas. So is the greed factor involved? Well maybe, but it is not just the greed of the textile maker, it is us as well, since we can get said products from overseas cheaper (i.e. Wal-mart) then we usually do. I can't remember the last pair of shoes I bought that weren't made in China.

But I'm getting off of the point I am trying to make. Unions are kind of like where you are born or do you like pickles, you can't tell someone who is a union man to hate unions just like you can't tell a union detractor that unions are good. You can try, but in all likelihood you are not going to change anyone's mind. I think I am more anti than pro... but again that is because of my personal experiences, which are skewed.

I know unions brought some industries up, with worker safety, wages, helping people not have to worry they would get fired, that sort of thing. I don't know if what we have today is the same thing, but you just never know. My father-in-law is a member of a union up in Pennsylvania, the way he talks, he could take it or leave it. I guess those dues are hurting, but if not for the union, I wonder if he would have the job he has now. So all I can really say about unions is pretty much nothing at all. Maybe they are good/bad, I'm sure someone who knows could point me in either direction... But it is more about where you come from or expect than a choice you can actually make. I never had to make that choice and hope I never do.

We Went `A Walkin'

So we took a walk. This is something I have wanted to do for sometime. The JDRF (Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation) walk was 3/5/11, or Saturday. I always felt there was something for cancer, there was something for Alzheimer's, something for for heart disease, March of Dimes, you name it... but never anything for what I am affected by. I have been a type 1 diabetic since I was 27. Now I'm 35, almost 36, and I have the opportunity to do something. Or at least be around other folks that go through the same thing I do everyday.

I am not one that will go ask for money but you see a student of my wife's contracted the disease, his name is Jake, and I cannot fathom how he deals with the disease. Yeah I know I have the very same problem and I face the same hurdles he does, but he is just a kid, I got to have a childhood, he does too, but it is severely altered. I just can't even imagine trying to go to kids birthdays, or just munching on random things. It really isn't possible with type 1 diabetics as you have to , take your blood sugar, do the math on what you ate, and give yourself insulin accordingly. There is no mindlessness to it at all. So though we have already walked if you would like to donate, here is the link: Team Jake 

I do believe that this is a disease that can be cured. And honestly, you can't help it if you got it. Many diseases you can do something to stave it off, like eat right, exercise, make sure you aren't living where dangerous chemicals and whatnot are. Type 1 diabetics not so much, you might be one tomorrow. Anyway if you can give that is great, if you can't that is ok too. 

Oh No... Spend More Money

So... on top of the troubles with the teenager, the sickness of Songbird, and the just being of the baby, and my wife's after-school school to become someone of administration, my AC breaks... again. The AC of the house, not the car (which broke twice last summer). The same AC I thought was giving me trouble when it was cold outside (heat pump). So I enlisted the help of a friend, since he works on this sort of thing all the time. First we check the start capacitor. It is what helps high amperage things get started... almost like a battery, it holds an amount of a charge, then when the motor comes on it empties giving the motor just what it needs. it is a $3-10 part. the one on my compressor worked just fine. Dang!!!

So with that, the least expensive and easiest to fix item, was off the list. I turned on the AC at the request of my friend, and he says (and I already had a sinking suspicion) that the actual fan motor had gone... which was not the end of the world, but it was a bit more involved. Still all and all I'm only out $130 bucks $95 (I just picked up the motor), instead of who knows how much if I would have called a repairman (probably $300 minimum) and this is something I need to keep telling myself, as I have yet to complete this task.

I have the old motor removed, the new motor ready to be put in, and of course it is in the 60's, which means I won't get the "oh honey, you saved us" from the wife if it were 80+ degrees outside, but all things considered, I don't really need that anyway. Don't get me wrong, it would be nice, but not necessary.

Here we see our culprit, the outside portion of a split system heat pump. It is working now, but it wasn't before. I have enclosed photos so that maybe if you have the same problems you too can go get the parts and fix it yourself. But if you should make sure you can handle it and it would help if you had someone in the know around. I went to Fox Appliance Parts for the parts. They do not have a web presence but their number is: (912) 234-0911. ‎

This is the part that went south. How do I know this? Well, on my particular unit it was either this or the start capacitor. We checked the capacitor, which was good, barring that you may not have a capacitor checker, a voltmeter with that option, I would go ahead and buy a new motor anyway, as it cost me $95, and they threw in a start capacitor anyway (for an additional $3) Also in my instance there was a bit of slop in the old motor, you could grab the shaft and wiggle it around, with a new motor you won't be able to do that.

Here we have the new motor (with the fan blade on it... it was the same fan blade, I took this picture after the fact) See that little silver box at the bottom of the picture? That is the start capacitor... you need to make sure before you go poking and prodding that this is discharged. What does that mean? You need to short out across the leads with something metal, like a screwdriver. Otherwise, if you short out the leads with a hand or arm or anything connected to your body, you will become a fireworks show... not fun.

Ok I have it mounted back on to the grill. I should say this took the longest. Cutting the threaded screw wire down to size was a pain. During this portion I would recommend a 2nd person that knows what needs to happen, understands how it happens... or not the help of a teenager, as it was not very much help at all. My wife came to help and it all went a lot smoother from that point on

Ok this is the point where I am just about to put the fan back in. You can see the innards of the AC and the copper piping the carries freon. It is also where you need to make sure nothing is hitting or coming into contact with the fan. I had to loosen the fan and push it a tad bit back, also make sure your wiring is good, not in the way, through the right holes, etc.

From this point all that was needed was a place to mount the capacitor, we opted for a hot glue gun, and stuck it where we could fit it.All that remained is to tighten the screws and turn the system on. I have the ability to heat/cool my home again... at a much more affordable price too.

Classic Film Friday: Metropolis

 This is, by all standards, the most vintage movie of classic movies. Since the film is silent, there are other things that catch your attention. The music, the actors emoting process, I find myself trying to read the lip sync of the actors words that appear later on screen. Well that is until you figure out that they are speaking German.


Anyway this is the standard that pretty much every sci-fi movie is held up to. Joh Fredersen is the leader of his futuristic city. But it is a world in which society is divided into two classes: planners and management or rich, who live in luxurious skyscrapers and one of workers or poor, who live and toil underground or better known as the depths. Freder is Joh's son. and he serves as intermediary between the workers and his dad. Maria a preacher that comes up from the worker's city, befriends Freder, and Freder tries to talk to his dad about the workers. But it falls on deaf ears (some people have to learn the hard way).

Jon speaks to Rotwang, a mad scientist, and who happens to have a rivalry with Jon... that is until Jon's wife Hel died. But Rotwang has invented his "Machine Man" or robot. And he is putting on the finishing touches on it when he speaks to Jon. They plot to kidnap Maria, as she has much support from the workers and the robot will take the place of Maria, with nobody knowing except them (Rotwang and Jon). And from there things get really interesting. Rotwang is really looking to kill Freder and Jon, and there is confusion amongst the crowd since they believe the robot to be Maria.  You'll have to watch to get the rest but I promise, if you do take to time to see this flick, you will appreciate it...

Florence + The Machine - Dog Days Are Over

This video is a tad bit off... I really don't get it but it seems to be popular. Whatever... It takes all kinds. You'll just see for yourself.

Happy Birthday Dr. Seuss!

We sort of forgot... I mean we have been busy and the guy is dead (he would have been 107 today) but anyway, it is a chance that teachers make (the elementary ones anyway) to promote reading, and we are all about that. When we don't have 3000 other things going on. So read a Dr. Seuss story to a child or to yourself... I know we will.

You Really Shouldn't Have...

Check Your Mail

I come from a rather large family. I mean I have 6 sisters and 2 brothers just in my immediate family. 4 sisters and 1 brother are my friend on facebook. 1 sister has disowned me... she is the daughter of my step-mother and father. I don't know how I could reconcile with her, she is too much like her mother (crazy) and I simply can't suffer that. The remaining sister and brother either do not have a computer, or are not on facebook. I don't have their phone numbers either, so I am regulated to talking to them when I go down to visit or I happen to call my dad when one of them is over at his house.

I was going through the mail the other day... you know, that stuff with a stamp on the outside, and someone magically delivers to your door (except Sundays)... the same stuff that all your (or some if you don't have the option to end paper billing from your bank) bills come from. And what did I see? A card, addressed to me. Was it some long lost girlfriend? Was it my ex? Was it a stalker? None of the above. It was from my brother and it was rather nonchalant. Just kind of checking in to see how I have been. All I have is an address, so I'm writing him back.

My brother and I had a love/hate relationship. He did a lot of mean stuff to me. But I don't think it was any different than any other older brother did to any other younger brother. We were boys... plain and simple. Sort of like the Wonder Years... except maybe not as nice, a little more violent, more illegal (breaking things drinking/smoking, that sort of thing) but real all the same. Now all I can hope is there is nothing wrong with him... you know, has cancer, or 6 months to live, or anything like that. I wrote him back, and for now I'll just wait and see. Who does that anymore? I guess my brother does.

Thinking back on all the good times we had, with nothing... we didn't know how good we had it when we had nothing. And maybe that is just it... we didn't have anything so all we could have is each other. Now I know that sounds like a sappy Lifetime movie of the week... better used on a woman/man relationship, not between brothers, but it is what it is.Or I should say was what it was. Perhaps this will be a new relationship... one with no wedgies or frog punches or gross farting. One can hope... Yes?