Squares!

Saw this on BBC last night and went to the site...interestingly addictive.

Whoa...

Went to see this with Tym, Terz and Yuhui yesterday evening...but since dat's already blogged about it...I will resist going on about how much I enjoyed it...Well, let's just say that any movie without knuckle dusters in it (specifically with the prefix "holy") is going to be poor fare indeed.
According to rottentomatoes people didn't like the movie, stating that it was quite a convoluted story that they couldn't really keep up with it...This reviewer hated the messiness of the movie that he went and wrote a messy review slamming it. Problem is that he effectively wrote a review that is messier and more incoherent than he claims that the movie is...
Anyway, I'm on 3 hours of sleep and I'm crashing, so I'm signing out and going home.

The Dark Knight.

And, we're taking a moment...and we're done.
The best part? No Batnipples.

The Dark Knight Returns...

...and thank the powers that be that Arnie does not get top billing. (We all remember Batman and Robin Starring ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER AS MR FREEZE and also starring georgeclooneychriso'donnellaliciasilverstone et al. )
Instead, they seem to have lined up a stellar British cast without the pomp or the ego. Christian Bale takes on the mantle of the bat and I would like to say that so far, it seems to exhibit a certain understatement that was severely lacking in aforementioned sequel. As far as I know, Batman Begins is based on Frank Miller's Batman: Year One graphic novel...which is a good sign because, and I'm on the verge of sounding like a rabid fanboy, Frank Miller Rocks! His work on Batman has become canonical and brought a franchise that was in danger of falling into the pit of campiness (thank you Adam West) back to life.
I know that I may be setting myself up for a big fall here, I mean I'm hyping myself up about 4 months in advance but I'm hoping that BB rises to the challenge of Miller-esque proportions...It must be able to breathe some life into the franchise that was dragged back into said pit of camp (Thank you Joel Schumacher). Only time will tell if my faith will be crushed like a cockroach or lifted on wings like Kotex.

When I get home and get my flickr password (cos I seem to have forgotten it) I shall upload the iconic image of my faith...

Hawaiian Roller Coaster Ride...

Just watched Lilo and Stitch again. It's still all good.
Every time I view the movie, I keep trying to remind myself to buy the soundtrack for the main title track He Mele No Lilo. That is one really surprisingly powerful track, coupled with the opening sequence of the hula dance, it's one heck of a good opening to any movie. It's subtle and it's got an energy that sidles into place. Amazing.
Apparently it's an amalgamation of two separate traditional Hawaiian songs, one that sings of a king and the other, a queen. It's fascinating actually.

Cliched Rock Lyrics and a song that was a "has been" before it was an "ever was".

Drops of Jupiter by Train
Now that she’s back in the atmosphere
With drops of jupiter in her hair, hey, hey
She acts like summer and walks like rain
Reminds me that there’s time to change, hey, hey
Since the return from her stay on the moon
She listens like spring and she talks like june, hey, hey

Tell me did you sail across the sun
Did you make it to the milky way to see the lights all faded
And that heaven is overrated
Tell me, did you fall for a shooting star
One without a permanent scar
And did you miss me while you were looking at yourself out there

Now that she’s back from that soul vacation
Tracing her way through the constellation, hey, hey
She checks out mozart while she does tae-bo
Reminds me that there’s time to grow, hey, hey
Now that she’s back in the atmosphere
I’m afraid that she might think of me as plain ol’ jane
Told a story about a man who is too afraid to fly so he never did land

Tell me did the wind sweep you off your feet
Did you finally get the chance to dance along the light of day
And head back to the milky way
And tell me, did venus blow your mind
Was it everything you wanted to find
And did you miss me while you were looking for yourself out there

Can you imagine no love, pride, deep-fried chicken
Your best friend always sticking up for you even when I know you’re wrong
Can you imagine no first dance, freeze dried romance five-hour phone
Conversation
The best soy latte that you ever had . . . and me

Tell me did the wind sweep you off your feet
Did you finally get the chance to dance along the light of day
And head back toward the milky way
...

Wow...it's like train decided to take all the lyrics from 1980's rock ballads (you know the ones, White Lion, Scorpion, Bon Jovi) and dump them all into one song. They could have been aiming for parody but it doesn't seem to show in this song. Well it sure isn't pastiche yet 'cos anyone listening to the radio are wondering why some aged rock band's tried to make a (poorly advised) comeback with lyrics that would make a Secondary 4 Literature student go "Oy!"...
Someone needs to tell these guys that 80's lyrics should stay in the 80's and that the 90's is a time for bands to either go for subtlety or incomprehensibility, and not the hamfisted attempt at both...
This song reminds me of an analogy that JL uses...square peg, round hole, BIG hammer.

p.s. I just had a look at the Train site and I think I might be able to explain their lyrics...these are guys who never grew out of the 80's. They're still there in there, doing the time warp again and dragging us all down with them.

Songs that I would like to Bitchslap if they were people...

If You're Not The One (Daniel Bedingfield)

If you’re not the one then why does my soul feel glad today?
If you’re not the one then why does my hand fit yours this way?
If you are not mine then why does your heart return my call
If you are not mine would I have the strength to stand at all

I never know what the future brings
But I know you are here with me now
We’ll make it through
And I hope you are the one I share my life with

I don’t want to run away but I can’t take it, I don’t understand
If I’m not made for you then why does my heart tell me that I am?
Is there any way that I can stay in your arms?

If I don’t need you then why am I crying on my bed?
If I don’t need you then why does your name resound in my head?
If you’re not for me then why does this distance maim my life?
If you’re not for me then why do I dream of you as my wife?

I don’t know why you’re so far away
But I know that this much is true
We’ll make it through
And I hope you are the one I share my life with
And I wish that you could be the one I die with
And I pray in you’re the one I build my home with
I hope I love you all my life

I don’t want to run away but I can’t take it, I don’t understand
If I’m not made for you then why does my heart tell me that I am
Is there any way that I can stay in your arms?

‘Cause I miss you, body and soul so strong that it takes my breath away
And I breathe you into my heart and pray for the strength to stand today
‘Cause I love you, whether it’s wrong or right
And though I can’t be with you tonight
And know my heart is by your side

I don’t want to run away but I can’t take it, I don’t understand
If I’m not made for you then why does my heart tell me that I am
Is there any way that I could stay in your arms?

Ugh...could this BE more saccharine? If this song were a man, he would be someone's bitch because he doesn't even have enough self respect to call it quits when it's over. The song makes me want to kick Daniel Beddingfield inna nuts to give the man some dignity...Speaking of nuts, when DB actually hits the high note with his falsetto, you suddenly realise why he's written a song like that...the man's been emasculated.

The bolded lyrics are the worst parts of it. Convincing someone through emotional blackmail? O man, what's the point? She's gone, let it rest. Geez...this is a guy who'll end up on the wrong side of a frying pan when his girl finally has enough of his whining. How pathetic could you get?

Well, I'll just end this post with an announcement,

"Has anyone seen Mr Beddingfield's balls?"

Cardiac Arrest...but it's worth it.

This is a Thresherman's Bakehouse breakfast.

Let's start with the least of the artery clogging foods.
On the right side you have the Minestrone Soup with a serving of bread and a half eaten sausage roll. The soup is self service so like the standard protocol is to scoop up as much veges as possible before you actually scoop in the soup, hence the spillage. Nothing like hot soup on a cold winter's day I say.
On the bottom of the left hand side, we have your standard focaccia sandwich stucked chock full of lettuce, cheese plus assorted meats. Normal. Huge, but normal.
The top right hand side's the kicker. This is heart attack central. It's a dish called the "Farmer's Breakfast"...of course, no self-respecting farmer would have this for breakfast unless he wanted to have a stroke while milking the cows. (Note, that farmers that I talked to actually have a sensible breakfast that consists of cereal and a good sandwich...carbing up for the day ahead.) [Yes, Carbohydrates has become a verb]
This artery clogging monstrosity (or heaven on a dish...depending on which way you go with it...) consists of grilled tomatoes, grilled mushrooms, bacon (yes, that's the pink meat you see at the bottom of the plate), sausage slices (Bright red with flecks of juicy fat), two slices of toast marinated with thee grease of two fried eggs and just to balance it, spinich. See how the food on the plate glistens...
That said, it's a pure taste explosion that leaves you in a daze for hours after...drool.
Anyone heading down to Melbourne should check this place out. Thresherman's Bakehouse is one of the nicest places to have breakfast and the atmosphere is totally casual...talk about a place to really kick back and watch the world go by.

Plus, it's close enough to the hospital in case of cardiac arrest.

Flickr Test Shot.

This is my Diamondback...It's purrrty.

And now back to scheduled programming...

I've been asked to tone down on the ick factor re: public displays of affection.

So, back to regular scheduled programming...

...uhm...
*Twiddles Thumbs*
So today was quite hot...
*Whistles*
Yeah...And school ended at 4:30pm...
*Scratch head*
And...uhm...It's the third day of Chinese New Year...
...Yeah...

Need to be next to you...

Well, apparently I'm not doing as well on my own as I once thought I could. I never realised how much of a married person I'd really become until now actually. When I go out, I'm fine. It's all good. But then I get back home to an empty house and suddenly it's like a part of me's gone missing. I'm not a big proponent of the whole losing yourself to another person thing because it always seemed to mean that you couldn't be complete unless you were with someone else but I guess that slowly over the years, that complete person has become more whole because of Sprite. (Not the drink)And now that she's not around, the "complete me" just isn't enough anymore.
I was driving home just now and the best of "Sixpence none the Richer" album that she bought me for Christmas was playing. And there's a song that struck home:
So here's to the one who I'm missing now.

Been running from these feelings for so long
Telling my heart I didn't mean it
Pretending I was better off alone
But I know that it's just a lie
So afraid to take a chance again
So afraid of what I feel inside

But I need to be next to you
I need to share every breath with you
I need to know I can see you smile each morning
Look into your eyes each night
For the rest of my life
Here with you near with you oh I
I need to be next to you
Need to be next to you

Right here with you is right where I belong
I lose my mind if I can't see you
Without you there's nothing in this life
That would make life worth living for
I can't bear the thought of you not there
I can't fight what I feel anymore

Cause I need to be next to you
I need to share every breath with you
I need to know I can see you smile each morning
Look into your eyes each night
For the rest of my life
Here with you near with you oh I
I need to be next to you

Side by Side Comparisons.

Mac Mini: The Affordable MAC.
1.25GHz PowerPC G4
256MB DDR333 SDRAM
ATI Radeon 9200 with 32MB DDR video memory
40GB Ultra ATA hard drive
Combo drive
DVI or VGA video output
AirPort Extreme and Bluetooth
optional
$928

Handpicked Components: Ugly Workhorse
2.4GHz P4
512 DDR400 SDRAM
ATI Radeon 9600 Bravo with 128 MB DDR video memory
80 GB Ultra ATA Hard Drive
16X DVD Writer
DVI or VGA Video output
Linux 2.7 Kernel OS.
$954

Cheaper alternative to the PC? Nah.
The computer times guys REALLY need to get their heads checked.

Milking the Cow to Death...

So there's a Valentine's Day pizza from Pizza Hut. It's heart shaped chock full of pineapples...It comes with the Valentine's Day couples special which includes 6 chicken drummettes. Because that's totally romantic. Someone should find whoever's coming up with these hare brained ideas and whip them to death with $6 rose stalks.
Talk about daylight robbery.
Well, then again, I'm getting the boys in my form class to do something nice for the girls. So maybe my inner cynic's giving way to the boy inside...
So while el crabbo's out of the way, I will borrow some words from Corrinne May and send them out to my wife:

I'm looking out the window
Where we sat to watch the stars
There's a chill within the air
It makes my heart long for your touch
You may be miles away
But as I kneel to pray

I see the same side of the moon
That we'll be looking on when the world turns blue
And know that time and space can't come between me and you
We share the same side of the moon
And though you'll never see all the tears shine through
I know I can't be that far from you
If we're both looking on the same side of the moon

I picture you across the ocean
In your corner of the world
I pray the wind will blow my voice
And gently whisper in your ear
Your night may be my day
And though the seasons change

It's still the same side of the moon
That we'll be looking on when the world turns blue
And know that time and space can't come between me and you
We share the same side of the moon
And though you'll never see all the tears shine through
I know I can't be that far from you
If we're both looking on the same side of the moon
I know I can't be that far from you
If we're both looking on the same side of the moon

Yeah...I didn't update...

But contrary to popular belief, I have not been sitting around in the house and languishing in filth...I have been non-productive...but I have been catching up on the sleep.
Won't promise to update, but I will. :)

Alone Again...Naturally.

Well, she's off again jetsetting around the world...this time to cold Calgary. House seems even emptier than the last time that she left...Maybe I'm just tired from the 4 hours of sleep I got last night. *Yawn*. Actually fell asleep through the course today and almost drooled in front of a roomful of teachers.
Anyways, we managed to get Skype set up so I'm hoping that Vancouver's got broadband. Miss my wife.
Did the laundry tonight cos the basket was overflowing.
Aside from that, my brain's shutting down so I'll just sign off now. Will blog more tomorrow. Fersure.