Thursday Thirteen - Films

Thirteen Things about 2007 Cinema It's just past the Oscars now, so what better subject for the Thursday Thirteen than films ... Looking to pick out what I thought notable over the past year or so for this one : 1 - Transformers. Great action and they just about get away with putting in their own origins here. It's rare that a movie conversion can use its comic origins as written and this one is no exception. But they did a very good job with what they did do. 2 - Camera work ... Yes, shakeycam does make you feel as if you're there but like a lot of fads, it'll often get taken to excess. Plus it would be good to see the action in fights in films like Transformers instead of just seeing a blur. 3 - The "It's Different" prize - not seen a film like Sweeney Todd for a while ... Helena Bonham-Carter must have had an absolute ball doing this one :-) And the CrazieBoys definitely enjoyed watching. 4 - Remembering ... Elizabeth Golden Age let us remember one of the pivotal periods of British history. Must look up the history books to see what really happened. 5 - Most Charming Animation - Ratatouille. Ok, some bits make you cringe but most of it made us laugh. Plus there's the Pixar introduction short movie, this one is one of their best. 6 - Interesting Beginning - Golden Compass. May have to acquire the books from these ... 7 - Characters I'd Most Like To Be A Slave Of - a tie between Michelle Pfeiffer's Lamia and Angelina Jolie's Grendel Mommy. Life expectancy might be a bit limited however. 8 - Film I was happiest to miss - Pirates 3. 9 - Film I unfortunately didn't miss - Spiderman 3. 10 - Best non-human character - Pantalaimon. The way that little demon shifts between forms on screen is incredible. 11 - The 'Did That Really Happen?' award - American Gangster. Good film this one, almost as good as The Departed which I missed at the cinema. 12 - Beowulf for raising the bar on CGI again. 13 - Most Wanted on dvd - Bourne Ultimatum. There's a few films I missed this year. Movies like Across The Universe and Atonement. Plus I successfully avoided watching No Country For Old Men and a few other potential turkeys.

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GPS Toy

I'm quite impressed with the latest toy acquisition ... I wrote here that I'd managed to break my satnav (I blame old age). I thought it would cost me a lot more than £25 to fix but Amazon managed to surprise me there.


Picked it up this morning and promptly went stir crazy at work wanting to have a play with it. Trouble is, it has to be near a window to see satellites, these don't work too well indoors. The new toy is the box on the left that's caught my flash. It talks to the iPaq on the right, which has the satnav software installed. The graph on the pic shows how well the receiver is seeing the satellites, when it can see about 3-4 it can get a position fix.

I had a chance to have a play on the way home, after bouncing off the walls at work. Was quite impressed to have Ms Whiplash on the SatNav barking orders even before I'd gotten out the car park ... That's fast - especially for a fresh receiver :-)

Other bits in the pic (it should expand into something bigger on a click) are :

• My laptop that's 6 years old now ... still with its shop stickers !
• iTunes showing what I was listening to :-)
• Evidence of how cluttered this place is ...
• One of my guilty secrets.

The gps unit is a BlueNext unit, ordered on the 23rd from Amazon UK, with the Post Office "we-tried-to-deliver" card coming through the door on the 26th. I'm hoping it succeeds its road test over this coming weekend ...

Also worth a peek :

Disintegrating wind turbine caught on camera - from The Register. Spectacular !

Hits from strange places

I occasionally peek at the info that the hit counter will give me ...

I've noticed a decent number of hits come from people looking at Google for "Indoor Cricket Tactics". I think I've been disappointing people who were looking for something profound in how to win at indoor cricket cos all they're getting is : Indoor Cricket Tactics.

I just so happen to be the number one result when plugging those three words into Google. Muahaha. I guess if I write Indoor Cricket Tactics enough into this post, Google will send people to this post instead :-) (Yes - I be evil !)

Sorry folks looking for the secrets to Indoor Cricket Tactics, the place we played was a little small and the rules a bit more friendly than what you're used to ... Fun game though, great work out.

PS The hypercompetitive people seem to be Aussies - most of the searches are from www.google.com.au. Good hunting people - if you're researching the tactics, that means you're taking it seriously enough to deserve an advantage over the rest of 'em :-)

Oscars and other awards

I've managed to avoid the Oscars and all the other annual awards things so far this year, I tend to try and miss them because all the critics seem to like films I hate. So I don't tend to pay much attention to the critics and the awards.

A few years ago, the amused disinterest spread into what became known at our place as the Sunrise awards ... It grew out of discussion on our works' public folders where the various contributors tended to like having a go at the judges for the awards because they couldn't understand how certain films won. Lots of politics involved I think ...

So I thought "Right - how would the awards end up if these people did the voting ?" And the Sunrise awards were born. We (crazies were conspiring on this one ...) aimed them for around this time of year, aiming for films that had come out in the previous year. There was about a week for nominations, where people would send in emails with a few noteworthy's in each category. Then there was a week for voting, where we had to pick our favourite. After that, I'd tot up the votes and do a winners post that would go on the forums again. And that would be it for that year's Sunrise awards.

A few things to notice with it :

1. Films released towards the end of the year are fresh in the mind and pinch all the silverware
2. Films from the start of the year get forgotten about
3. Art house film fans don't like it that they're in a minority :-)
4. Everyone likes different things - quite right too
5. Completely independent people will still give strange voting results

It was fun while it lasted and showed we had about twice/three times as many silent lurkers on those forums than people who actually posted ... (Probably the same with Blogging ! Get yourselves an account and get commenting :-)

I had to close it down though after a couple of years because I'd got busier with work, my new boss also lurked on forums and I couldn't hide doing the admin for the awards as well as being Captain for the project's indoor cricket team. We couldn't actually run it now because the Powers That Be (well - their minions) decided that we wouldn't have public folders at work any more. They'd been on borrowed time since a few muppets had fun in a free for all folder called "Soapbox", with the resulting trolling getting the forums noticed by the bosses. And if bosses notice high activity in something non-work, they'll start taking an unhealthy interest ...

PS There is a Sunrise Celebration out there and I think I've seen the phrase Sunrise Awards somewhere too. The celebration people are a bit later than us, the third one will be this year. My Sunrise Awards were way back in 02 or 03 ... Completely free from any corporate influence and I believe the only PosterGirls involved with the judging were CQ and RCA, plus one or two I didn't know outside of email.

I is a old soul

Lol - not quite sure what to make of this one, it's acquired from Bob-kat's blog today. I'm very definitely a creature of habit and suffer a lot from inertia ... Wonder where all those Warrior and Visionary souls are ?

You Are an Old Soul

You are an experienced soul who appreciates tradition. Mellow and wise, you like to be with others but also to be alone. Down to earth, you are sensible and impatient. A creature of habit, it takes you a while to warm up to new people. You hate injustice, and you're very protective of family and friends A bit demanding, you expect proper behavior from others. Extremely independent you don't mind living or being alone. But when you find love, you tend to want marriage right away. Souls you are most compatible with: Warrior Soul and Visionary Soul

What Kind of Soul Are You?

How do you celebrate ?

Curious about this one - we've just had one of the best Six Nations Rugby matches I've seen for some time and happily England ran out the winners. France were playing passionately and near their mercurial best but England were able to soak up all the pressure and counterpunched when they could.

The scoring of the England try right at the end drew out a fist raising "YES!" out of me. I reckon the way we celebrate either winning or losing can tell a lot about it. It certainly tells things about our passion for the activity we've been pinning our hopes on. I've gone for the fistraising one fairly often in my sport. There's just something to seeing the stumps and bails going flying when you've snuck a ball past a batsman's defences.

When I'm watching rugby and a team is about to score a try, it's often a more first (definitely not the middle one!) finger pointed in the air in a more dignified kinda mini-fist. I reckon if the event being celebrated is more sudden like a wicket in cricket, a goal in football or the opening of an exam results envelope, the cheering will be that much more intense.

I've gone for the Shirt-Over-Head & Aeroplanes one a few times but I try not to do that any more as it's usually followed by cries of "Put it away!" (My figure is not what you'd call svelte). I don't think I've ever done the Snoopy Dance, although I can understand more Twinkle-Toed people going for that one.

The most important thing is the dignity aspect. A celebration is only a good one if it has respect for the loser in the house. That would be the people who you just realise have failed that exam, or the batsman who just got sent back to the pavilion. Bad losers aren't good people to know but Bad Winners are a lot, lot worse. I'd like to think I've never intentionally rubbed in a triumph and once or twice I've given an "Unlucky mate" to someone who's gotten out to me who really didn't deserve it.

So what's your favourite celebration ? Is it the quiet demonstration, the Primal Scream, the Snoopy Dance or do you try to embarass yourself as much as you can ? This isn't just for the sporty, success in anything should be celebrated, including exams, relationships, achievements for other people, promotions, anything.

PS There's an audio clip somewhere which has Guildlink's first downing of Ragnaros, which marked that organisation "Arriving" on the Big-Guild stage. When he went down, there was a good bit of shouting YES! from various people, followed by what can only be described as gurgling giggling. Well - I had an open mic and nothing better popped into my head. What makes it really embarassing is that the next comment was an "Oooo-kay" from Sarai, the raid leader. Think she may have been alt-tabbing to Teamspeak to see who needed the huggy jacket.

Blunt Force Trauma

Just watched the final Rocky film. Wow.

I'm a sports fan and will usually find time to take a peek at all sports. Except boxing. I see boxing as one of the more ugly barbarous sports out there, it's just two people trying to beat each other senseless, with not really that much skill involved. I admire skill in sport more than sheer power or athletic ability, so I tend to ignore stuff that doesn't involve skill.

So what's a non-boxing fan doing watching Rocky ? It's not just the fight in one of these, it's how they build up to it. This one has an old guy who's still fighting for what he believes in but now he's fighting out of the ring. Genuine nice guy who likes to help people out. I think when I get this one on dvd, I'll be watching more for the out of ring stuff.

When it gets to the fight though, they show everything. Power, commitment, heart. The punches fly and oh yes - it really looks like they hurt. Which it's supposed to ... There's a lot of censorship that goes on in action films/tv which I don't understand. Show the effects, the full effects and you'll show the full consequences of either shooting someone or thumping someone. And seeing those consequences (on a movie screen) will hopefully stop someone from pulling the trigger someday. There is a line between what's suitable and what's sick though, in terms of what some writers/directors will put on screen.

Doh - me ranting again (future blog post coming about some guy who got grief for saying he was taking guns to a party).

Rocky Balboa - has brutal action sequences in the fight at the end but for motivational power, well - I'm thinking of getting up and taking a run around the block, even though I have one pulled calf muscle and another complaining calf muscle :-). It would do me good and I've run off worse injuries before ...

"Marie: The last thing to age on somebody is their heart "

PS Hallmark just caught my eye, they're about to show : Blue Butterfly. Might be worth a peek :-)

Need a car

Haven't a clue what to get !

Here's a pic of what I have now :


It has the obvious stuff - fun to drive, power, gets kiddies saying "look mommy it's a spaceship!". But it also have economy, reliability and more flexibility than a soft top ...

So I'm now wondering what to get next, which is getting more pressing because at 9 years old, it's starting to disintegrate. A Focus, a Golf, A N Other midsized saloon/hatchback is just plain boring. Soft top would cause me problems when I wanted to move things around. Mazda's RX-8 looks interesting but it's allegedly a bit of an oil burner.

Here's another picture, feel free to join me in a "Looks Purdy!" moment :


Currently chilling to stuff off Sky plus. The testing on Monday/Tuesday was easy but it's been really hectic since then. We're having a big IT change next Monday and because I've managed to stay ahead of all the IT problems people have, I'm seen as some kind of IT guru person ...

Which is fine, apart from when the questions start mounting up. There's only so many times I can answer the same question without getting snappy ;-) I deliberately avoid working in IT support because I know I would go insane after a month. I do like helping out people with their problems, I just like to pick and choose when and who I help ... I must have done ok cos I got a handshake from one of the boys in the car park saying thanks for helping everyone out. Maybe it was me not running around the corner to hide. Now wondering what we're going to find next week ...

Dinner bell just went off - gotta run :-)

Thursday Thirteen - classy songs

Michele's got me the idea for this one, it's a Thursday Thirteen made up of songs I like the most. I've set myself a rule though, only one song from an artist, so I can get lots of artists on here. Otherwise it would be all Alisha's Attic.

1 - Alisha's Attic - The Incidentals. Guaranteed to melt the hardest heart :-)
2 - The Bangles - Return Post. Not on their greatest hits, which is a crime.
3 - Crowded House - Four Seasons in One Day. Even when you're feeling low, like four seasons in one day.
4 - Pink Floyd - Wish You Were Here. The whole album is an amazing tribute to Syd Barrett, this one is the highlight.
5 - All About Eve - Martha's Harbour. Also check out their Scarlet and Apple Tree Man. (bit of a slow-loader that one)
6 - Kate Bush - The Man With the Child In His Eyes. And Aerial shows she's still well worth listening to 27 years after.
7 - Edie Brickell - Ghost of a Dog. Weepy one ...
8 - Tori Amos - Silent All These Years. First track I heard from Tori, still my favourite.
9 - The Beatles - Eleanor Rigby.
10 - Suzanne Vega - Machine Ballerina. Didn't think much of this one at first, really like it now.
(can't find an audio/video - this one is on the Songs In Red And Grey album)
11 - ABBA - Happy New Year.
12 - Clannad - Fado. Laid back Clannad, heavenly Maire Brennan vocals.
13 - Led Zeppelin - Stairway to Heaven.

So that's 13 artists/groups who I adore. There's people missing though. There's no Peter Gabriel up there and nothing by Mark Knopfler. The ABBA song could have been any of at least 10 of their's. I also listen to a lot of Garbage (the Shirley Manson headed group!) and some classical.

CK might like to check out I Will Find You by Clannad - it's the theme tune to Last of the Mohicans.

Yey - I have the Thursday Thirteen code again :-)

The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things.

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I need a new ...

Insert word as appropriate ! At the moment the appropriate word is "diet" and the reason is a combination of :

2 days of a steady diet of black coffee and biscuits
(to stay awake during testing!)
A 2 and a half hour drive home
A salt bomb

I had trouble finding somewhere to get food last night, so resorted to the local chippie :-) The sausage and chips is the salt bomb I refer to above. That's the kind of food I like but I think next time I'll be raiding the chinese instead ... I have legs that are highly prone to cramping and they reminded me at about 2.30am ;-) Not a gentle reminder, this one was a howling "I gotta stand up and get my foot pointing the right way again !" cramp.

People need a certain amount of salt (Sodium) to keep their bodies functioning properly, which is why travellers in the desert will take salt tablets. But too much is also bad for you.

It'll be fine in a couple of days and this time it wasn't both calf muscles going bang on the way to a fitness test leading to me trudging around for a week with torn calf muscles :-)

Lol - I should take better care of myself !

Oh - One thing about doing the washing up, all that standing up is very good for stretching off those tortured calf muscles :-)

PS I also need a new car, gps receiver, telly, dvdplayer, laptop, speakers, pillows, books, relationship, hobbies and I could probably add more ... I'll settle for a new diet, although that will take a lot of effort plus another car to replace my 9 year old Puma. The car is a complex one as I really do have no clue whatsoever as to what to get next ...