Month: December 2002 (Page 1 of 4)

CRAWFORD, Texas (AP) – President Bush said Tuesday that an attack by Saddam Hussein or a terrorist ally “would cripple our economy,” offering new justification for potential war against Iraq even as he said North Korea’s nuclear ambitions can be curbed without military conflict.

Is it possible that people are beginning to catch on to how crazy and irrational this Iraq vendetta is? Probably not. But in a new year, we can hope.

Punch-drunk movie reviewers

Been meaning to post this for some time. Back when I was watching “Punch-Drunk Love” just about every day, I was reading a lot of reviews and such for it on the internet. I came upon this synopsis of the movie on some site I wish I could remember the name of, but I can’t. Still, I think it’s hilarious how many things are wrong with this small blurb:

Barry, the owner of a phone-sex business that is slowly failing, becomes obsessed with collecting pudding coupons that offer frequent flyer miles. He eventually earns enough to fly around the world. When he learns that a woman whom he had met by chance and about whom he cannot stop thinking has left for vacation in Hawaii, he uses the coupons for a trip to find her.

Did they see the movie? Any of it?

“Catch Me If You Can” is close to 2-1/2 hours long, and Steven Spielberg uses that massive canvas to siphon every bit of fun from what should have been a lighthearted, frothy story about a charming teenage con man. Take away this leaden seriousness (the con man was upset over his mother’s infidelity! the fed is a humorless man alone on Christmas! etc.) and about an hour’s running time, and maybe you’d have something. As it is, you have a movie destined to be given an award by the Watch Light Battery Society of America.

When, oh when is “About Schmidt” opening?

My friend Lisa, who rarely sees movies in the theater, was telling me last night about her new DVD player. She said she was looking forward to seeing the new Star Wars movies finally, since she was such a fan of the original trilogy.

If you’re really a fan, I said, you’ll skip the new ones.

I think this was good advice.

Bring on 2003!

Frankly, this year sucked. I went through a tremendous amount of rejection, both personal and professional; I spent about six months of the year trying to deal with inexplicable bouts of anxiety, panic, and psychosomatic illness; I had friends coping with family illness and death; the political and social climate of the country swirled even further down the drain; and I don’t know anyone in particular who’s had anything positive to say about the last 12 months of the calendar. My prediction was so, so wrong.

But…

I’ve met some great people this year, I’ve managed to support myself (barely) as a freelancer, and people seem to still be reading these words. I’d like to thank everyone who takes time to come here and read my insane ramblings. You’re a great group of people that I’m lucky to know, and I wish you all a Much Improved 2003.

Playing a lot of Game Neverending lately, and I’m not sure why. The people I recommended it to didn’t like it. I guess it can seem pointless and stupid, but I think the same probably could be said for The Sims Online.

The game world is small, but there’s tons of secrets to learn, either by stumbling on them or, more likely, learning them from another player willing to share. And I love how real life is mirrored/distorted in the game. The biggest new thing they added recently is property ownership. But new homes come up for sale very infrequently, leaving lots of people frustrated. And on the other side, locations in the game that used to be meadows are now construction sites, making other people mad about increased development. Which is funny, considering we’re talking about pixels on a screen.

What’s the most addictive computer game you’ve ever played? Did you think about it when you were away from the computer? What made it so good (or bad, depending on your perspective)?

God Bless Us, Everyone.

Had a great, quiet Christmas with my mother and stepfather, out in the wilds between Dodgeville and Spring Green. I think my favorite part was the now traditional beef and chicken fondue on Christmas Day. Got some great gifts from some great people, listened to Nat King Cole, ate fresh holiday M&Ms, wore my dad’s old bathrobe. These are good things.

Now I just have to wait for that Powerball drawing. (I bought five tickets; according to my mother, buying one ticket for a $300 million jackpot is sound financial planning, but five is crazy.) I have a good feeling about this. You all better start being really nice to me. 🙂

UPDATE: No, I didn’t win. But you can still be nice to me if you want.

The main effect of installing the SpamNet spam blocker on my Outlook inbox? Making me realize how little real e-mail I receive. Maybe they should call it LowSelfEsteemNet.

And there were in the same country shepherds
abiding in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night,
when lo, the Angel of the Lord came upon them.
The glory of the Lord shone round about them.
And they were sore afraid.
And the angel said unto them,
“Fear not, for behold! I bring you tidings of great joy,
which shall be to all people.
For unto you is born this day in the City of David,
a Savior. ‘Tis Christ the Lord.
And this shall be a sign unto you.
You shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes,
lying in a manger.”
And suddenly there was with the angel
a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God,
and saying,
“Glory to God in the highest, and on Earth peace,
good will toward men.”

That’s what Christmas is all about, Charlie Brown.

Happened to be at Borders this afternoon, and the checkout line extended from one corner of the store, over to the opposite corner and then back to the rear wall. This made me nearly physically ill, for two reasons.

1. Thinking about all the stuff people are buying that no one needs, not just at Borders (I love books), but all around the country.

2. What the H-E-double-hockey-sticks are people doing at any sort of retail establishment the day before Christmas Eve? Are they certifiably insane? Reminds me of Yogi Berra’s “No one goes there any more. It’s too crowded.” (In my defense: I was there killing time. I wasn’t going to buy anything.)

Ho. Ho. Ho.