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It's the Friday before the Tour de France prologue and news is not good. The top two contenders, Jan Ullrich and Ivan Basso have been suspended from their teams for being included in the Spanish doping scandal. This is unfortunate and makes this year's Tour even more uncertain.

Jan is old in cycling years and this would've been his best chance to win a second yellow jersey since before the Armstrong era. Basso would've been trying for a Giro-Tour double which hasn't been done in awhile. This is unfortunate news and is a dark mark on the sport of
cycling.

Labels: cycling, Le Tour de France

Nacho Libre

Funny. Mexican wrestling is supposed to be. Men in masks and tights. Jack Black with a silly accent. Yet, it was missing somethings. It wasn't too funny as the trailer led you to believe.

I am gonna give it a mediocre rating because I think men in tights is funny.

3 of 5 stars

Labels: movies, review

I suck at bike riding. I love to do it but I suck.

Don't give me a hill. I can't climb.

Don't give me a straight. There's no power in these legs.

Don't give me a descent. I can't descend.

Yet, I bought a new bike. Added some pricey components. Why? The government made me do it with their damn refund.

So you on the road.

I reread the previous post on the two films. They don't read like reviews. They read like thoughts about the film. I should re-title them.

No more reviews. Just thoughts on film.

I hope these two help in you choosing what to see this weekend.

Cars. I saw it with my two nephews. They enjoyed it, but it didn't thrill them as much. I felt this was a weaker effort by the Pixar crew. It ranks below Finding Nemo and that was my least favorite of the bunch.

3 of 5 stars


An Inconvenient Truth. It really should've been title, "We Are Fucked." Global warming is here. If we don't do anything about it, we will be swimming in Manhattan. We need to change our ways. Let's all ride a bike to work. Perhaps cut down on working. Where do I get these fluorescent lightbulbs? Now. I liked the movie. The message was important. We need to start working to change our ways.

The only problem I had was that it made me sad to see Al Gore. It was the lost presidency. I've always believed that our president should be smarter than us. This guys a wonk's wonk and a nerd's nerd. He was passionate about changing our ways for the good. And instead of this thinking person, we get the brain dead, fucktard George W. Bush. Gore was thinking of the future. Bush and his Republican cronies look to the past. No vision. No brains. Fuck George Bush in the ass.

That's why I had to give this movie one less star than it deserves. I get pissed thinking of what could've been, should've been. And I watch Al Gore do a slide show presentation.

3 of 5 stars.

Labels: movies, review

US loses to Ghana 2-1 in today's important world cup match. They are now eliminated from this year's play. They still haven't won a match on European soil. Until next time.

The Ghana goals were set up by US slack play. A stolen ball and a penalty kick. Damn US play better defense.

Clint Dempsey's goal equalizer was a great set up by DeMarcus Beasley. It was a spectactular finish. He had a good World Cup. The rest of the team stunk. The worst was the keeper Casey Keller. Did not stop anything in this match and did not really play up to his billing in the others.

Labels: sports

Yikes, this is getting scary and fun. I dream about I again.

I'm back taking classes at Towson and my class is in the old building on campus which use to house the cs department. I get there and the class is packed so I end up near the windows in the back.

In walks the dame.

She doesn't see me and takes a seat in the back as well. I hide from her all class until the end when we meet and exchange pleasantries.

"Hello." "Hi." "What've you been up to?"

The next class and I want to tell her something about the way that I feel. I'm going to do it afterwards.

As classes finishes, I walk out before she does. I wait for her at the bottom of the stairs. It takes her awhile to get out. I see her now amidst the crowd. As she descends, I ascend up to her.

"Hey. You got another class?" "No, I'm done." "Can I walk with you to your car?" "Sure." "I got something to ask." "Yeah?"

Now here's the deal. I want to ask her what happened between us when we were kids. Was there something there? Did I blow it? (Most likely yes and no. Stupid adolescents.) Except this is what came stammering out.

"Would you like to get coffee?" (Coffee?!)
"No. I got to run." (Ouch)
"Uhh. I mean on saturday?"
"No."

She's leaving and I can't do anything about it.

"You know I'm asking you out on a date?"
"Sure." (Meaning she knows. Damn!)

She's getting into her Lexus SUV. Think. Desperation sets in. I can't let her leave without attempting to re-establish a relationship.

"At least, can I get your phone nymber?"
"I'm in the book under my sister, Becky."

Becky? What's her last name again? O, yeah. I remember. I don't think her sister's name was Becky.

She's gone and I feel low. I get into my old Jetta and smoke a cigarette.

Then I am with my cousin and brother smoking in the parking lot of Friday's. Telling them about this. It must be my subconsious telling me to blog this. I tell them the sad tale. They say clean out your ashtray there's cigarett butts allover the center console. I open the door to dump the ashtray out.

Then I wake up with the taste of stale cigarettes. Was this only a dream?

Update: I think that this isn't I, but SL. Why do I think that? SL had a sister named Rebecca as hot a brunette as SL. SL was also somewhat aloof. We had good times together but nothing spectactular. There's no history there. I usually don't dream about her.

Labels: dreams, nostalgia, that girl

Sweet

This blog post from one of the Windows Vista managers can really sum up
many software projects. Too much complexity. Too much process
overhead. I experience this everyday and my programs are in the 100K
range.

I just wanted to post a shot from my vacation a while back. Although most of the photos are of nothing but our hikes, it's better than getting one of all the geeks tapping away at the keyboard.

This is while I wasted time at the airport.

Labels: nerd, picture, vacation

Gunslinger Girl is an anime DVD set in Italy with these little girls who've lost their previous lives and have been given cybernetic bodies and lethal skills. They are killing cyborgs. And yet they are still little girls with guns.

This anime maintains the theme that the father of all, Blade Runner, anime keeps, "Can replicants have feelings, too?" The girls have been trained and conditioned to be lethal killing machines, but they are still little girls. The cybernetic implants are slowly killing them and will they understand that their lives have a meaning outside of guns and assassinations. It is a rather sad theme. Melancholy.

The girls are teamed with an adult in a "fratello." That is their handler. Some handlers are mean. Some are indifferent. Others are saddened by the fate the girls have been placed in. Yet they do not show love to their younger "sister" afraid at what the attachment might mean to their relationship. Will it weaken the girls's killer instincts and place both their lives in jeopardy?

I went in thinking that this was going to be a rock 'em shoot out with little girls with guns, but it was a more moving story. I originally rated it 4 after the first disc, but the second disc dropped it to a 3 because it had too much action. I am giving it a 4 overall, because the last disc made me sad. Beethoven's 9th and shooting stars will not be the same.

There was some action, but the languid pacing of each episode was appropriate for the theme. Do not think that this is a shoot 'em up anime or you will be disappointed. But then again, you may find the story beautiful and appreciate it for the tale it tells. I wonder what happens to them.
4 of 5 stars.

Labels: movies, Netflix Queue, review

That was a horrendous start for the US losing 3 nil to Czech Republic. It's like 1998 all over again.

Labels: sports

On the eve of the World Cup, I watch my latest movie from Netflix, Shaolin Soccer. How fortuitous that it arrives at just this moment. I don't think I had tried, but it happened.

I was laughing throughout this flick. Funny. And it was about soccer. A great sport to do a film on. The best bits were the friendly with the thugs, the ET reference, the high flying girls as guys soccer duo, and the Bruce Lee goalie. That guy even wore the suit from the Game of Death! Hilarious.

4 of 5 stars.

Go Team USA!

Labels: movies, Netflix Queue, review

Another dream about I. This one quickly escaping my memory.

We meet somehow. She needs a ride home. I take her there. It's back to her parent's house. On the drive, I think I ask about what happened. She lightly touches my hand on the stickshift as she says she wonders about that, too.

Her parents are at home. It's hot and I ask about the pool out back with a desire to go swimming. I follow her up stairs as she goes to ask her parents. I catch a glimpse of her mom. I do not feel comfortable. We leave the room. As we walk down the hall then down the stairs, she gets closer and closer to me shoulder to shoulder.

Next thing I know we are in her father's office, opening desk drawers for some hidden latch. She checks the bottom right, finds a switch and presses it. The bottom left opens from which she grabs some keys. We race outside.

The pool is an above ground pool. We get in. A young kid joins us. I assume that it is her younger brother, but it turns out to be a neighbor. We swim at night. Ever slowly, we come together. We play with the neighbor. His mom calls him home, and suddenly it is just I and me swimming in the dark.

I think we embrace. I feel flushed with emotions. Do we kiss? What happened to us? The last bit I remember is that her resting her head on my shoulders and pulling me closer.

Labels: dreams, nostalgia, that girl

With Memorial Day coming and going last week, we have entered the prime summer movie season. This is what I've been training for. And it doesn't seem to be a very good one.

My ratings so far, if you're keeping score go like:

Mission Impossible 3: 2 stars
An American Haunting: 1 star
Brick: 3 stars
Poseidon: 2 stars
The Da Vinci Code: 2 stars

As you can see, my impression of this season is rather low. The highest rated was Brick and even then, I gave it a favorable rating because of its indie status. So let's see what else I have to review.

On Memorial Day, I ponied up the cash to help X-Men III: The Last Stand make incredible box office numbers. That's the best I can say about it. They cameoed many characters from the X-Men comics: Psylock?!, Jubilee?!, Omega Red. They were listed in the credits, but I didn't catch them on screen. Too many mutants shown in too short a time.

That wouldn't have been the only problem, if not for the lame story. Why did they have the Phoenix saga plotline when it was nothing like the Phoenix saga? She comes back, but is not a priordial force, just some scizophrenic part of Jean Grey. Trapped in a psychic cocoon. Please.

Sir Ian McKellan again breathes life to another limp movie as Magneto. Except the lameness of this story crushed his energy and we were left with a demagnetized Magneto.

This one stinks.

2 of 5 stars.

Tonight, I caught The Breakup. Do not read any farther if you don't want the movie SPOILED.



It was supposedly a romantic comedy, or at least that was the impression the commercials gave off. "Come see Jennifer Anniston and Vince Vaughn fall in love. On screen. (and off)" Yet, I did not laugh in the first 25 minutes. And romance is the last thing you think of after leaving the theatre. I was prepared to give it another 2 star rating, except the ending made me bump it up. You know I am a sucker for the boy not getting the girl endings. Bittersweet. I love it. They didn't get back together. They meet cute on the street a few months down the road and we are left with filling in the blanks of the future. I vote for not getting back together. I like it like that. So the ending surprised me and had me feeling better about the movie. It saved the day. Of course, I should've seen it coming.

Anyway, I didn't laugh. I didn't feel mushy. Yet, I liked the movie.

3 of 5 stars.

The Breakup was another movie (The Family Stone, Failure to Launch) that sounded weird. I think they hardly added any ambient noise to the soundtrack.

Labels: movies, review

Here's a photo of the nerd herd at The Big Nerd Ranch. The tall one in the middle is our instructor, Aaron Hillegass. I am trying to write a review about the class (outside my experience), so expect one coming soon. I haven't written any Cocoa code since then, but plan to as soon as I get a better schedule.

Labels: objective-C, software development, travel log, vacation

New Super Mario Brothers game is coming out for the Nintendo DS. I haven't been excited about a game in a long time. And it isn't even a new game. Or very modern. I think I am still hung up on getting to Koopa, but not defeating him, in Mario Brothers 2.

I am also really excited about the updated Nintendo DS Lite. Again it is just a glamorous GameBoy, but man I am getting one when it comes out June 11. The PSP blows it away in graphics and probably games, but this looks so totally cool. I wish I could get it in the blue color.