Sundry Items

The Dark Knight hit the $500 million dollar mark for US ticket sales. It's now less than a $100 million away from over taking Titanic. I've heard the Titanic lovers saying that tickets were a lot cheaper in 1998 when it came out so even if Dark Knight beats it in overall sales, Titanic still sold more tickets. Yeah, no one listened to us Star Wars fans when we said the same thing. Am I a nerd? I'm a nerd.

Hurricane Gustav is getting ready to slam New Orleans. I still say they should let lower New Orleans become a swamp and rebuild upriver. It would be a better use of money.

In other Gustav news, the GOP convention is getting delayed a little bit because of the hurricane. Does this mean that God hates Republicans? Or is he giving McCain a chance to shine. Or, in the words of a piece of flair I saw, is he not Republican or Democrat? Probably the last option.

In other God news, I had thought I hated all LDS hymns written by Eliza Snow. That wasn't entirely true. The words are just fine, it's the music that sucks. Most of them are written by a guy named George Careless, who lived up to his name. You see, you always hit a point in one of his songs where the men drop out and the women are left trying to sing soprano and it always comes off sounding weak. The Mormon Tabernacle Choir could probably do it just fine, the congregation has troubles. So, there was a song we sang today (we actually ended up singing two George Careless songs) where we took turns dropping out. First the women dropped out, leaving the men trying to sing bass, then the men dropped out and left the women to sing. I think it was during the second verse that I just stopped singing. Singing should be fun, it should uplift your soul. If it just irritates you, I think it's okay to just sit and stay quiet. Or, as I did, whisper in your neighbor's (Emily's) ear that we must be having a George Careless Labor Day Marathon.

We've now entered the heated political season where hatred and emotion trumps reason. Friendships are challenged, marriages are tried. I'm voting for McCain. Not because I think he's the best man for the job, just because I think he's the best man running. If you're an Obama supporter, I'm okay with that. If you hate the overall political process and won't vote at all, that's okay too. If you want my opinions on the race, you can ask. If I wish to blog about my opinions, I'll make the title clear that's what I'm doing in the title so you can skip it if you wish.

For Labor Day weekend I get to work all weekend (including Monday) but I'm going to try to enjoy some festivities Monday before work. So I'll have a little fun. Oh, I can't wait until I'm actually settled in a career.

McCain's VP pick

I knew that John McCain would make his VP selection today. It would get some attention back to him right after the Democratic Convention ended. I figured the top of his list was Mitt Romney, the man I voted for in the primaries. There was also some talk of other contenders. Let me tell you, when I turned the TV on today (just as McCain was making his announcement) I was not expecting Sarah Palin. In fact, I don't know that I'd heard of her. But I think McCain got this pick right (whether you support him or not) and I'll tell you why:

• Barack Obama had the chance to do what has only been done once in the history of this nation: pick a woman to join him on his presidential ticket. What a historic occasion that would have been. The first black president and the first woman vice president. It's everything the Democrats claim to be.
• About fifty percent of Hillary Clinton supporters have said they won't vote for Obama, they're still upset that Clinton lost the nomination. This isn't too uncommon, usually when your guy (or gal) doesn't get the nomination you have sour grapes for a while, but then when it comes time to vote, you go with your own party. In this case, McCain has given Hillary supporters a place to cast their ballot. A lot of women in this country that supported Hillary did it because she was a woman. McCain may have just snatched a lot of potential Obama voters. I'll be interested to see the poll numbers next week.
• In picking Sarah Palin, John McCain has chosen a Vice President that has more experience than the Democrat nominee. That's awesome!
• Joe Biden is a jerk and an attack dog. He would have had no problem tearing into any one of McCain's potential VP's during the VP debates. Now he'll be up against a woman. If he tries his usual tactics, he'll come off looking bad.
• Not that this matters, but Sarah Palin is hot. I'm just sayin'.
• Both Sarah Palin and her husband are union people. I don't really care for unions, but the union vote is one that the Republicans generally don't get. This may swing things a little.
• Sarah Palin, like John McCain, is for fiscal repsonsibility, meaning that the government shouldn't spend billions of dollars it doesn't have on projects the country doesn't need.
• As mayor of Wasilla, Alaska, she cut her own salary (something almost unheard of in politics) and cut property taxes by 60%.
• When it comes to ethics, she has no problems blowing the whistle on even her own party members (something the Republicans should be more willing to do).
  
• Palin's approval rating in Alaska as of last month was 80%.

Let me tell you, I was a little disappointed to hear Romney didn't get the nod, but I'm excited about Sarah Palin. I think it will bring a lot of attention to McCain's campaign, while snubbing Obama for not picking Hillary. We'll see how it turns out.

Goodbye, Beijing

In honor of the 2008 Olympics closing tonight, I've compiled a list of sports that should say goodbye too, and the reasons they should go. Have fun!

• Baseball and Basketball: These sports were just fine when it was amateurs competing. Once they let the pros in they haven't been very fair to other nations. Especially in basketball where the competitions are dominated by NBA talent every year. Let's just let these be international professional sports and not olympic sports.
• Boxing: This is just angry men hitting each other. I'm not a huge fan of real violence (movie violence is just fine, the choreography makes it more like dancing). I almost got to see angry men start hitting each other at the gas station today. I wouldn't give them a gold for it. (Whether or not this actually came to blows, I don't know. I decided to leave before learning whether or not one of the parties had a gun.)
• Judo/Taekwondo: Martial arts are supposed to be disciplined exercises of self-control and protection. It really shouldn't be competitive, otherwise it just becomes more like boxing.
• Rhythmic Gymnastics: I love the regular gymnastics. It takes immense strength, mental acuity, and skill. Rhythmic gymnastics is basically little girls waving ribbons behind them or playing will bouncy balls. That's not a sport, that's a parade (or the circuis).
• Rowing can stay, sailing should go. Rowing takes strength and skill, and sure, so does sailing, but it seems too much like yachting. Can you picture that? Men standing on million dollar yachts in their white pants, blue dinner jackets, holding a martini?
• Shooting: I actually think this should remain because it does require skill and hey, shooting a gun is just cool. The reason I list it is do we really want countries that we could end up at war with getting better at shooting.
• Table Tennis: Forrest? Forrest? This isn't a sport! I could do this! I think the main qualifications for this sport are the ability to stand, and the possession of at least one hand.
• Trampoline: Come on, aren't these just gymnastics rejects? Bounce on your own time. Don't ask for medals for bouncing better than others.
• Weighlifting: Sure, this takes training and lots of working out. But a sport? You're just picking up heavy stuff. Of course, I'd never say this around a weightlifter. They could probably pick me up and throw me a good distance. Now THAT would be a sport.

My new hero

Last night I turned on the TV and caught some of the women's gymnastics. They were doing the vault final and they kept cutting to this girl walking around. Only, she wasn't like the other girls. She seemed to have a more calm, more mature air about her. I thought to myself, 'hey, she's kind of cute', then the commentators starting talking about her. She's this 33 year old woman competing for Germany and she ended up getting the Silver medal for the vault competition. I was like, wow, a 33 year old getting an olympic medal for gymnastics is amazing. It just doesn't happen. So I was already thinking, 'this girl's my new hero' and told Emily about it this morning. Turns out she knew about it too, only she had heard the whole story.

It turns out that the woman (Chusovitina Oksana) was a Russian gymnist when she was about 19. Since then she's gotten married and had a son. Her son developed leukemia and the hospital told her they didn't have room for him so she'd just have to watch him die. Well, like any parent, you just can't take that for an answer. Especially when you know leukemia is treatable. So she called one of the coaches in Germany and asked for help. The coach got her on the German team so she could compete. Her son was able to get health care and is now in remission.

This woman went and did something that very few women her age could do, and not only saving her sons life, brought back a silver medal, proving that being 33 isn't old. She's an inspiration to people to not give up something you enjoy just because people say you can't do it. And she's going to be a personal hero to her son.

And she's not bad on the eyes. I know, I'm an evil, evil person.

Harry Potter Delay

Warner Brothers, in all their wisdom, has decided to delay the release of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince to next July. So all of us loyal fans who were counting on a November release (about 100 days away) now get a July 17th release (over 300 days away). Why has the wonderful WB made this decision? Well, like all studios: money. With The Dark Knight (also a WB product), they have decided that they've surpassed budget expectations and can save Harry Potter, another sure hit for the studio, to next year, when they don't have as many big budget movies coming out.

They've said the core audience for the film will be out of school next July, allowing HBP more time to bring in money. It is also the same weekend Dark Knight came out. So all the wonderful fans are basically being punished for their loyalty and willingness to spend time making the studio rich. Kind of like what's happening at work to me. So I shouldn't be surprised by something like this. It is the second movie to be bumped like this (the first was Star Trek, getting moved from Christmas to next May).

I also love WB's attempt to spin the story. They've said the repercussions of the writer's strike was also a reason in the delay, but go on to say post-production for the movie finished on time. What does that mean? The movie's done. They could put it in theaters next week. I guess it was an added bonus to blame the writers for wanting to actually get paid for their work.

So guys, enjoy the rest of your year. City of Ember, James Bond, and Twilight will still (I hope) come out next year. And we'll get to see HBP next year. And, to take some of the edge off, WB says the delay won't hold up the first part of Deathly Hallows, so there should be a shorter gap between films (I'm guessing July 2010?).

Our new elliptical

I decided a little while back that what I really need is an elliptical. Why? Let me jump back a little.

When I met with my wonderful sleep doctor a few months back she told me to lose 50 pounds. After two months, I'm going in the wrong direction. I've only gained maybe two pounds, but I'm definitely not losing any. I know some of that stems from bad habits I need to break (eating at 1 in the morning, drinking soda on an almost daily basis) and while I'll work on those too, having a better diet won't make enough difference. Because I've been off soda and I've been more responsible with my eating.

Okay, I tried exercising. I tried running around my neighborhood, which sucks when the temps in the 90s and the humidity is really high. And I have to take Will with me in his jogging stroller, so I have to stop to sunscreen him and hope he doesn't get heat stroke. I also tried taking walks on my breaks at work, which would get me a 15-20 minute walk. Not bad, but it's rough in the summer and winter.

So, the elliptical. I know I'll use it on a regular basis because in the past when I've had access to exercise equipment I've been good at using it. I mean, I can pull the thing into the living room and watch TV while exercising.

I've actually been looking for awhile. Most ellipticals are more expensive than I'd like. I mean sure, the $500 model is really awesome looking, but it's also $500. So I hit up Craigslist.com and found some models I'd like, but no one would call me back. Silly people.

Then I tried ebay and Amazon. With ebay you have to go to the effort of bidding and hoping you get a worthwhile price, remembering that you have to pay for shipping. With Amazon and other retailers you also have shipping.

I ended up at Walmart.com. The benefit with them is they have a lot of items on their website that they don't sell in stores. What you can do is buy it and have them ship it to your local store. They do this for free and all you have to do is pick it up. Not bad. So I found up two ellipticals that were pretty cheap. And I'll tell you how I picked. Here they are:


Okay, here are the factors. There is only about $4 difference in the price, they are about the same size, and both have the electronic display. Here are the issues that made the difference. On the second one, the gears in the back are exposed. You can see the little fan like wires goign across. Little fingers, like Will's, may be able to get in there and get smashed. Smashed baby fingers, not so good.

The second issue is the model that comes with the bike. The top model is your stereotypical cute blond who probably doesn't know which end of the elliptical to stand on. It's like those Chuck Norris exercise commercials. You know those people don't actually use the equipment, they're in a real gym 18 hours a day. Or, in this blond's case, she's just one of those annoying girls who can eat a cow every six minutes and still retain her shape.

Then there's the redhead. What can I say, I just have a thing for redheads. So that's the elliptical I bought. I expect to pick up said elliptical and said redhead in 7-10 business days. Emily will probably be fine with that.

So now I'm starting on my goal to lose weight. Now, the goals I try to set aren't goals you can't control, like lose 3-5 pounds per week. Instead, my goal is to come home from work every night and use the elliptical for a while. I'd also like to use it in the mornings (or noon, when I actually get out of bed). I'll keep everyone up to date on how I'm doing.

A Request

If you are in an English speaking congregation at church, and you are capable of speaking English, please do so. Do not say a prayer, give a talk, bear a testimony, or bless a child, in a language that maybe five other people know. I can't say 'amen' if I don't know what you said. You could totally be blasting the bishop for all I know. You could be praying to Buddha. I'm not going to get in on that. It's rude to speak your native language when only other natives (again, the vast minority) can understand what you're saying.

And I know that people have said that someone came to speak or give their testimony in their congregation and they didn't know English, so they gave it in their own language and the spirit was so strong. Well yeah, I get that. They don't speak the language so they're doing their best. This isn't what I'm talking about. I'm talking about the idea that you've decided to exclude 95% of the congregation so you can honor your heritage or some other garbage.

*#@$ing Road Construction

On the weekends I go into work at 2:30 in the afternoon. Today we decided to see a movie that got out just after 1pm. After gabbing with my friends for a while, I left for work. This was 1:30. I figured I had an hour to drive the 20-30 minutes it should take to get to work, leaving plenty of time to get lunch. Well, I get on I-435 to hit I-35 North to get to work. Only, the ramp going to I-35 North is closed. It's one of those exits where you take the I-35 exit and then you can go right for north or left for south. So, I didn't know the northbound lane was closed until I was on the exit. And no, there were no signs that I could see warning me before I got of 435. So I got shunted into I-35 South traffic. 35 South was down to one lane so it took forever to get onto, then I had to head to the next exit to turn around and get on 35 North again, which was down to two, and then one lane. It took forever to hit an exit that would get me around traffic to get to work on time. So, I end up right next to work with three minutes to go. I say, 'I'm still hungry' and hit the Taco Bueno that is literally shares the lot with us. Only this Taco Bueno sucks with customer service so they don't acknowledge that I've pulled up, let alone take my order. So I pull away. I ate what I brought for dinner for lunch and I'll have to go out for dinner.

I hate road construction and I really hate Taco Bueno. I do like that my little 4-cylindar car really has some get up, though. Go Versa!

Talula does the Hula (SPOILER WARNING)

This is a review of Stephenie Meyer's Breaking Dawn. There will be spoilers. That means that if you haven't finished the book and wish to do so, don't read this blog.

Skip it now, move to the next topic, and come back when you're ready.

Emily, I know you're not finished, go away!

Okay, if you're still here, then you have read the novel or have no desire to ever do so.

Right...I've got to say, this was my favorite Twilight novel yet. It actually went places. I'm not sure if it ranks up there with The Host, but it's close. Now, I'm not going to dwell on all the wonders of Stephenie Meyer's writing (and this girl knows how to write), instead, just a few things I just thought a little silly. Like Bella's name for her child. Renesmee? It took half the novel before I could say it in my head without tripping! Okay, I get that it's a combination of her two mother figures, but Renesmee? Get a baby naming book or something. This is like all the names for Harry Potter's offspring.

I wonder what would have happened if her child had been a boy. There's EJ (Edward Jacob), though I don't think you should give your child the name of an ex-boyfriend. How about combine your hubby and daddy's names. Would that be Edlie or Charwood. I'm partial to Charwood, with the burning and all.

Okay, that's about all the criticism. Now I have an honest question for the ladies out there because I know that women think differently than men. You have Jacob, who Bella got pretty close to, and if Edward hadn't returned (or even existed in the first place), Bella probably would have ended up with him and everyone knew it. So this old friend/potential boyfriend, with all his history of trying to steal Bella, knowing she's committed to Edward, shows up at the wedding and picks a fight and Bella STILL WANTS TO BE BESTEST FRIENDS?!? That just doesn't jive with me. If I had an ex-girlfriend who tried through my engagement to steal me from Emily show up at the reception, she'd been kicked out, no matter how close we had been. And I wouldn't care about her well being. I'd probably make fun of her for being psycho. But men aren't as sensitive.

All that said, I thought the chapters from Jacob's point of view were really good and I loved the way his character turned out.

I'm really happy with the direction of the novel and all the new things she brought in with the immortal children, Bella's power, and all the vampires from across the world. Now I have to wait for Midnight Sun, to get Edward's point of view.

Okay, I have to say this

I saw on Yahoo that people are complaining of the deep voice used by Christian Bale when he's in his Batman role in The Dark Knight. I understand the criticism, because he's awefully croaky. But, I get it. Even with the cowl covering most of his face, his normal Bruce Wayne voice would give him away. Now, when Batman is talking to someone who knows his identity, he should drop the deep voice and just speak normally, but he keeps it up. I understand the criticism, but it also makes sense why he'd change his voice around others, especially someone who might notice that this caped crusader sounds like Billionaire Playboy Bruce Wayne.

Why do I understand?

Well, think of the recent Spiderman movies. Tobey Maguire runs around in this costume, and sure he's completely covered, but he goes around saving and talking to people who know him. He does it in his normal Peter Parker voice, even calling Mary Jane his cute "MJ" nickname. And. No. One. Ever. Figures. It. Out. I know that's not the point of the movie, but if I ran around in a costume fighting crime, and went and saved my wife, I would think my size and voice, and if I called her something like Em or Emmy, she'd figure out it was me. It's a little annoying.

And so is the Batman deep voice. But it works. It's more believable, so I'm okay with it.

That is all.