Friday Follies...
Okay, so we're staring at another weekend...FINALLY.
Time to get out, get shopping, fill up the gas tank in every vehicle (because the price of fuel, while still at a 5 year LOW is beginning to creep back up a few cents), get the decorations up, get the tree up and basically GET BUSY!
--Looks like the auto bailout hit a roadblock (more like a set of SPIKE STRIPS...lol)
The UAW didn't much like the concessions Congress "asked" of them, so, "Howie"...NO DEAL!
I think the best recourse at this time is to let them claim bankruptcy, restructure and get shaking on becoming solvent and profitable once again. We saw it work pretty well for Delta Airlines, so it CAN be done. Whether or not it will is another story.
--Illinois governor hasn't stepped down yet.
Exactly HOW MUCH ROD can that state take, I ask you?
C'mon, governor...you're looking at a 30 year stretch in Joliet for the crap you've been pulling, and "selling" a Senatorial seat isn't the best way to further ENDEAR yourself to anyone, ESPECIALLY the "Feds".
--Jennifer Aniston is wearing a tie...and not much else on the cover of the January 2009 issue of GQ magazine. Now is it just me, or is there something sexy about her being almost FORTY YEARS OLD? I remember when 40 was a nasty word, and in the 60s, you didn't trust anyone OVER 30. Hell, in Logan's Run, everyone that REACHED 30 was required to perform at the "Carousel", where they were to "renew" (read zapped into oblivion by lasers).
But now, I guess the "new" 40 is more like the "old" 25? Well, if THAT is true, and life truly BEGINS at 40, I might be a mere "teenager"(sans acne), but that makes me....dead in DOG YEARS (again)!
Oh to have those days back again...
-- Washington state governor still allows atheist "sign" next to Nativity "scene". This dimbulb sure doesn't get it. It's not an issue of what is allowed by the 1st Amendment, we know almost anything goes there, but it's the appropriateness of the venue and time of year, not to mention that if one SCENE for the holidays is to be displayed, then any other SCENE related should also be allowed. Wonder what a typical ATHEIST SCENE would entail? Perhaps some lonely guy standing in a dark corner watching all the people around him enjoying the "religiosity" of the season? Perhaps a few people dancing around a bonfire in robes during the winter solstice full moon, howling like banshees?
If this atheist can conjure up a winter SCENE to get his point across...fine, but the SIGN should not be allowed next to a seasonal SCENE. It's about the MANNER of the display, and should NOT be some snide commentary mocking those who follow a higher power (imho).
--Another remake hits the big screen.
The Day The Earth Stood Still (a classic 1951 movie) has been redone to echo the times of TODAY, and it's no longer about NUCLEAR issues, but ENVIRONMENTAL issues (paging Al Gore - Environmangelist Extraordinaire). Keanu Reeves is taking the KLAATU role once held by the late Michael Rennie (no comparison...Rennie was better by about 250 million miles - the distance travelled by Klaatu when he came to earth). Reeves might have been fine in THE MATRIX series, but here...nope, not gonna buy it for a minute - TOO unemotional. He'd make a Vulcan High-Priestess look like an "A card" pole-dancer at Showgirls III...!
Sorry, but when it comes to movies, I am guilty of being a PURIST. I like my movies the way they are intended to be made. And I am always hard-pressed to even view ANY remake. I like the ORIGINAL version the best, be it TV shows or movies. Knight Rider is a classic case. Both shows are cheesy as far as acting (what acting?), but the ORIGINAL K.I.T.T. is the one you'll remember. Same goes for Starsky & Hutch, or the Dukes of Hazzard.
When it comes to movies, the same applies.
I like my GORTS the old-fashioned way. You can SF/X the hell out of me, but the guy in the modified silver scuba suit with that cool visor that zapped any weapon into slag is gonna be hard to beat.
They did a remake on the Manchurian Candidate, and Laurence Harvey is still better.
And after several failed attempts to remake King Kong, they finally got a film that hearkens back to the original in some ways, but lacks the nuances of the time the original was made.
They had a "remake" of THE THING (from another 1951 classic), and I didn't much care for it. John Carpenter had too much gore and a lousy ending. They remade Frankenstein SO many times, I've lost count. And they've even remade the HULK (after a handful of years passed from the first movie). Where does it all end?
Now I will admit to some trepidation when Michael Keaton was BATMAN, but that was a damn fine move. So when I hear of yet ANOTHER "version" of Batman, I was "give me a break". This was an instance where I was marvelously wrong in my assessment.
Christian Bale as Batman was a masterstroke, and the box office receipts bear that out.
So a remake is not ALWAYS a bad thing...just about 90% of the time.
Still, when it comes to the B&W classic movies that instilled a sense of terror in us (one guy can stop the world...electrically-speaking) that will tend to get your attention. I cringe at the thought of a remake of On The Beach ....or Creature From the Black Lagoon...or even Plan 9 From Outer Space (voted the worst movie ever made). Uh, oh...I think I just gave some producers a few ideas...
--Lastly, 'Tis the season for giving, and while we always extol the virtues of providing for the less fortunate PEOPLE, we often neglect those furry friends of ours. While Toys for Tots is a VERY noble venture, as are the red potted bell ringers for the Salvation Army and the food banks, many animal shelters this time of year need assistance as well, especially with all the "new arrivals" they receive. And the only thing these poor creatures are guilty of are is not having anyone to care for them and love them.
Not a good sentence to endure, is it?
My wife and I are members of both the Humane Society and the ASPCA, and we do what we can to assist and provide for those left alone at some shelter. So reach down deep and give a little...it won't hurt, will definitely help, and make YOU feel good that you did so.
Who knows...maybe you'll make a new "friend" in the process, and spare a dog or cat from a much shorter life.
And if you're not planning anything special, take a drive out to the Black Pine Animal Park in Albion and say "hi" to INDIA. I'm sure any donations would be much appreciated at this time of year there as well.
Take the time to make a difference.
And DO have a SAFE weekend.