Welcome to Huntington!

It's Monday morning again and time for some blog posts. With the WV bloggers board out of action I have more time to concentrate on blogging! This may be a blessing or a curse. What is always demoralizing for me (in terms of blogging) is getting online after the weekend and realizing that the last blog post is 4 days old (ish). I should really store up some posts and then just move them from draft to posted over the weekend...or just not let it bother me so much! :-)

Today's observation is one that i've had several times really. Every single working day in fact. It's the ride into Huntington. It has to be one of the least visually appealing sights for any new visitor to the city. It kinda makes me cringe a little thinking about. Either way into the city (from the Interstate) has it's problems. Route 60 has a thousand stop lights on it, and strip bars and you have to stay on it for about 15 minutes from the Interstate. The other exit is a nicer drive in. Less stop lights, a shorter road, but there are some aesthetically-horrible, brown housing and that short road has a few serious holes in it. What usually makes me smile though is the shiny Cabell Hospital building ,(which seems to be constantly worked on) and the Robert C Byrd sign out front which seems to be a haven for the sick smokers (there's there condition that makes them sick, not my judgement of them). If I were Mr/Senator Byrd I'd be pretty ticked about it. "Get off my sign!" I'd say, "and take your drip with you!". I understand that giving up smoking is extremely difficult, but the logic of going out there to smoke escapes me. OK you're in hospital, your feeling pretty bad, so what will make you feel better? Some bed rest, or a trip out to a busy, noisy, smelly, road to breathe in some carbon monoxide and cigarette smoke. Still, at least those hospital germs won't get you out there.

TV season returns!

Well it seemed like the summer would never end. Re-run after re-run and about 100 episodes of Scrubs a week. Finally, new new programmes are here and here is what I am watching currently:

Heroes: It's the second season and so far so good! I was wondering where they would take this show. I mean it kinda wrapped up most of the story lines last season, but the developments are interesting. There is still a lot of mystery, characters haven't fully revealed themselves and there are new characters and new powers. Not sure about the whole "travelling back 500 years in time" bit but I'm willing to be a little more patient.

House: I'm not sure which season of House we are on now, especially as I missed the first seasons. We are a couple of episodes in but I'm still a little confused about the whole team of assistants thing. (POSSIBLE SPOILER) Did they all just quit? Was this explained and I missed it?? I haven't been able to stand watching any of the potential assistants so far but I liked the idea of it.

Journeyman: OK. Now I KNOW which season this is on. Number 1....right? A new show that so far has really caught my attention. I was pretty sceptical to begin with, I mean it's just Quantum Leap right? Well yes and no. Yes, it is about traveling back in time and 'fixing' someone a moment in someone else's life and yes, it is more about the drama, interaction and characters than it is about the sci-fi aspect. No, there is no real explanation for the time traveling, he seems to have a fellow time-traveller with him (who is slightly hotter than Al and Ziggy) and no, he actually returns to the present which adds another dimension to the show. He has to try and juggle his time travelling with keeping a "normal" life with his wife and kids. Emotionally engaging and a bit sci-fiy. Great stuff.

Time for a rant...

Well, you may have seen my previous post about the water situation in Hurricane. It's getting pretty bad. In fact, it is so bad now that there are "trucking in water". I'm not sure if this is a turn of phrase or actual trucks but either way it's an apparent justification to raise water prices. Again. I'm pretty annoyed about it. In fact thinking about it too long just makes me feel sick inside. I mean it sounds reasonable. There is no water in the reservoir and so more must be brought in which is going to cost more money. What really gets me is that they must have known for at least 3 months that this was going to happen. The reservoir has looked pretty empty for a while now but there has been no water bans. I think I first heard about one last weekend and I'm not even entirely sure what the ban was on! I've still seen people out washing there cars and plants with hoses. A water ban would have helped the reservoir and kept resident's water bills lower. The other thing that gets me is the lack of preparation for the water running out. It seems like they waited to the last minute to find a solution and the solution is: Raise prices. They should have made preparations months ago using the money they already have, not jack up the price at the last minute because they failed to act. I can feel a sense a strongly worded letter heading towards the Hurricane council members, and while I write it I'll be dancing for the rain to come.

Irrational Thoughts

A big thanks to Albert Ellis for this. Here is a list of 10 irrational thoughts that he said must be "recognized, evaluated, challenged and changed". It is sticking to these specific beliefs that cause problems in life rather than the events themselves. It is not the stimulus, like getting into a car wreck, it is the attitude and belief about the event "it's the end of the world", "this always happens to me", "this was just bad luck", "at least no-one was hurt" - that effect our emotions and behaviors and, in-turn, our thoughts. One person in the wreck may react angrily while another is simply upset. A third may take it with a smile. Have a read through the thoughts and see how many you do and really remind yourself that they are irrational thoughts.

Irrational Idea 1 - It is a dire necessity for an adult to be loved or approved by almost everyone for virtually everything he or she does.

Irrational Idea 2 - One should be thoroughly competent, adequate, and achieving in all possible respects.

Irrational Idea 3 - Certain people are bad, wicked, or villainous and they should be severely blamed and punished for their sins.

Irrational Idea 4 - It is terrible, horrible, and catastrophic when things are not going the way one would like them to go.

Irrational Idea 5 - Human happiness is externally caused and people have little or no ability to control their sorrows or rid themselves of their negative feelings.

Irrational Idea 6 - If something is or may be dangerous or fearsome, one should be terribly occupied with it and upset about it.

Irrational Idea 7 - It is easier to avoid facing many life difficulties and self-responsibilities than to undertake more rewarding forms of self-discipline.

Irrational Idea 8 - The past is all-important and because something once strongly affected one’s life, it should indefinitely do so.

Irrational Idea 9 - People and things should be different from the way that they are, and it is catastrophic if perfect solutions to the grim realities of life are not immediately found.

Irrational Idea 10 - Maximum human happiness can be achieved by inertia and inaction or by passively "enjoying oneself."

I think I'm guilty of at least 3 of these which hopefully qualifies me as human in Ellis' eyes. (not that I need his approval (see number 1).

Zeg niet dat je me niet meer kent.

Thank you for the comment on my last post Ned ;-) I was thinking of the exact same thing. Here is a small tribute. I think "herinner" means "Heckfire".

P.S. You might wanna skip to around the 3 min part, Ned.

The name is Click....All Click

Being a spy has always looked so cool in the movies. You get a bunch of great gadgets, you get a cool car, and you have the chance to travel all over the world. If anyone saw the show "Spooks" (i think it showed on A&E and now BBC America as "MI5" you got to see the MI5 in a more..realistic light. It was pretty gritty, ethics were compromised and people's faces got severely fried. Literally. Whilst checking my email this week I was thus confronted with two conflicting emotions. On one day I had an email alerting me to a position at the MI5 and the next MI6. Thinking about James Bond and cool gadgets I opened the MI5...the super spy title of the position? "Administrative Assistant". Hmmm that doesn't sound too cool to me. That sounds like the kind of job where I'll get my face shoved in a deep fat fryer on the way home from work. I think I'll pass for now.

A note about my links

After adding a new blog to my link section this week (the first time I've done that in a long while!) I thought I'd offer an explanation to my choice of links. Basically it's pretty simple. The links are for me. Which I guess by default means that you can determine what sites I like to visit, read and topics I'm interested in. Such as movies and games. Imdb and Lazylaces have always been staples in my morning Internet ritual. I check lazylaces for games and imdb for movie news and review and scores. So obviously they had to make the list. I can check my blog and then link out easily. Since entering the blogging world some 5 months ago I have had to change my routine slightly. I still have time for the lazylaces and imdb (they aren't paying me to mention them, scouts honour) but have worked reading other blogs into my schedule.
So, the list of blogs on my page are a declaration of the blogs I read daily. To any blog that isn't on the list take no offence. I probably haven't read you enough yet!

(What follows are short descriptions of each site, but in this is in no way a complete description!)

The Film Geek writes movie reviews, personal insights (usually these within the reviews) funny videos, stories and much more. The insightful readers choice! (See further done on my blog for a preview of The Film Geeks latest blog posts!)

A Sour Apple Tree offers stories on things in Huntington, experienced by a local, retro wrestling memories, food, TV and anything else funny he decides to create.

Destination Unknown (feel free to read my blog entry about the return of this!) is about..well anything that RedZeppelin chooses. Sometimes he comments on news stories, games, books and other times it's his observations, pictures and maybe even something about Geocaching. Please ask him about this. Especially if you own a GPS. Well written and writes about the subjects I wish I had of commented on, and the way I wish I would have written!

Blog! The Musical! Is Spike Nesmith's collection of weekly(ish) podcasts. Here his dulcet, Scottish tones describe his views on the weeks new events. Not for the week of humour ;-)

And the newest addition is "This is not my blog" by JediJawa. Here Jedi discusses his views on personal events, news stories and just opens up! Well worth taking the time to read through each post and learn from another's perspective. This blog has the guts to just print what the mind is saying.

Here comes the rain

Well it looks like Fall has fallen today almost as if a big switch was flicked in a weather room somewhere. I, for one, am welcoming the change in weather. It's a little cooler today (still t-shirt weather though) which means walking more than 20 feet is actually bearable, you no longer have to squint all day long, and it will hopefully help some of the dusty patches of grass I've seen around campus and in t'valley spring back to life. I'll be really glad when there is enough rain to fill up the Hurricane Reservoir. If anyone has driven by it in the last couple of months you might think it was a mud flat. It's not the most relaxing sight to see every morning and acts as a pretty strong reminder of the effects of global warming. Perhaps they should keep it that way and put up a big sign "Look what global warming did" or "Global warming is in your reservoir stealing your water". At first it was kinda interesting, the water level was slowly decreasing and I was looking forward to seeing what was at the bottom of the reservoir. Bicycles, money, car parts, dead bodies. Turns out there was just a whole lot of mud. Anyway, I'm looking forward to the rain and the leaves changing and opening my arms to Falls weather. At least until I step into a two foot deep puddle. The first step is always a duzey (sp).

Something from Erickson

At the moment I am currently (and slowly) reading a book called "Phoenix" about Milton Erickson. It transcribes some of Erickson's personal philosophies, techniques and methods and there are some great personal stories in there, as well as a sum up by the author of what Erickson was trying to illustrate. So far, so good. I decided to attempt one of the techniques, and Erickson actually applied this to a smoker. Although, I don't smoke I did find myself drinking way too much soda at home so at the moment I'm paying for each can. Yes, in terms of the amount of sugar and calories but also quite literally I pay 50c every time I have a soda. I have to say it's going pretty well so far. I've cut down a lot, I'm drinking more water, and I've got a nice little pot of change going. Fighting off those sweet tooth urges later in the evening has been the worse but I'm not breaking into soda machines just yet. It is a great book for anyone really serious about self change so go buy a copy.

My Spidey-Sense is Tingling

When I was a young boy the only "Superhero" I wanted to be was Batman. He was all the rage. I had watched the movies and had the action figures, the sticker albums and the movie posters. Superman was cool too but he was old-news and before my time. I only saw glimpses of him on the tv on old re-runs of the movies but I was seeing Batman on the big screen, a 9ft wide square jaw, a cool Batmobile and crazy villains you wanted to "boo" loudly at. Spiderman was just a cartoon character who despite kicking butt and being able to climb stuff was never any one's first choice on the playground. If only I could return to those childhood days now and tell my younger self how cool Spiderman really is. While I'm wishing for things I may as well wish that I could be like Spiderman...a waste if my time, you say? Well now that reality is here! That's right, a spidey suit could be made and we all could be climbing the walls in no time. I bet Walmart would be the ideal investor. No more pesky wasted spaces up there by the ceiling, just grab a spidey suit and head on up there. I'll start writing to them now.

James McFadden

Like a true England Supporter, of course I support all teams from the UK in their Euro qualifiers :-D (especially any playing France) and so without further ado here is a vid of James McFadden's goal against France (no relation to this man). What a beauty. Note the calmness of the impartial commentator and the music which I believe to be Scotland's new Anthem ;-)

Quoits

Apparently Quoits is an Roman/old English traditional lawn game. You throw a heavy metal ring onto a poll/pin. Seems pretty straight forward and is much like the game horseshoes. I was watching a couple of people play this old past time today and it made me think about "Entertainment" and whether or not people were and could be still interested in playing such old fashioned games. I believe that generally people DO want to move and play games like this. There is something about weighing up the physics, balance, strength, energy needed, momentum and skill that comes from playing physically involving games that you can't really describe. You seem to be able to gain more satisfaction of accomplishing something compared to what you can do with a controller, a game system and a couple of flexible thumbs. I also think that people can enjoy these old fashioned games because it's the basic premise that is appealing in its simplicity. As computer games become more complicated and involved the next generation could grow up demanding more complex games and become bored at the prospect of throwing a metal ring at a pin. Who wants to be outside throwing a heavy piece of metal when you could be comfy at home throwing a virtual hoop? I sure hope this won't be the case but if it is...more Quoits for me!

The Worst E-commerce in the world!

In response to Chris James' eloquent post about suddenlink witness another man's reaction to Suddenlink....

West Virginia fog

The weather in West Virginia has been an eye opener for me. I thought I had experienced it all. Rain, Sun, wind, snow..the usual. This morning driving along I-64 we suddenly saw a cloud that looked like thick smoke, it was kinda dark and just on one side of the road in a small patch. Ms. AllClick and I stared longer and harder at it...and then realised there was another patch of it on the right of the road. It was an incredibly localised patch of fog. It was kinda spooky, like that movie about the fog...can't remember the name right now. The further we drove the more patches we would see, in tight clumps, along the interstate. As we gazed back towards an opening area near Barboursville the fog had swamped over the trees in front of the sun creating a fantastic silhouette that has really brightened my day this morning. I wish I had of had a camera with me. You'll just have to get out there this morning and see it for yourselves.

3:10 to Yuma

I'm not much of a Western fan. Mainly due to the fact that I have seen very little and haven't really felt any need to see them. This may all change from now on after watching the excellent "3:10 to Yuma". I had a feeling it was going to be good when it had received 8.8 on imdb (always a good sign) but also because Christian Bale and Russell Crowe were in the movie. I don't mind Crowe's movies. He's had a couple of flops recently but "Yuma" showed some of his better acting abilities and was a much better fit. Bale is quickly becoming one of the best actors of this generation of movie stars. He is certainly versatile, (just look at The Machinist, American Psycho, Batman Begins, and The Prestige) and has an incredible talent to not only put on an American accent, but change that accent to suit the region/state he is supposed to be from. Both of these stars put in an excellent performance (dare I say, Oscar worthy?) which is helped due to a really effective and original storyline (although this IS a remake) played out in the Old West. This is a must for Western fans, Bale and Crowe fans and just anyone who wants to see one of the best films of the year so far. It made me jump, it made me laugh, I was on the edge of my seat literally for the last 30 minutes so be prepared for it all.

IndestructoTank!

Sometimes it just goes to show that a simple game with a simple premise can be fun and addictive. This is a side-scrolling game. You control a tank. It's indestructible. Their are choppers out to get you. The aim? Launch yourself from the explosions and bounce into those choppers wracking up bonuses and gaining experience. Brilliant. Well worth messing around with on a coffee break and relieving some stress. Enjoy!

Jellybattle

This is a very original and interesting concept for a battle game. You play as a Jelly Baby/man on a grid with 3 other Jellymen. You get to choose a square to jump to in order to try and collect either a weapon, shield or health. These bonuses are on the grid but the whole grid moves down a square each "round". So, you must plan your move early so that you jump to the square the bonus is about to be on...phew! Sounds complicated, but it's easy to pick up once you start playing. I believe you can play it online with real people, but you can also play against the computer. Very addictive, fun game if you have 15 mins to spare...and like Jelly Babies.

Heist

Heist is one of those games that looks pretty cool, has a nice story and premise..but ultimately struggles due to the gameplay. You have to control it using the WSAD keys (which always confuses me when I need to do something in a hurry) and so I walked into a few lasers simply because I pressed down instead of going right. You'll see what I mean when you play it. The puzzles are pretty challenging though and there are mini-games thrown in as well. If you can get over the controls then u'll probably enjoy this snazzy game.

Let the games begin

Time for some more Point and Click games to use up all your free time! First game on my list is Papa Pizza. It's basically a Sim-esque Pizza Parlour game. You take the orders and cook up the pie for the customer. Seems simple, except you have to place the topping they want onto the pizza in the place and amount they want it, then put it in the oven for the time they require and THEN cut it how they like it. How fussy is that?? You get more and more customers as you progress through each level (if you're good) and the orders get more complicated. I've played this game for a while now and have only revealed about half the customers and the end doesn't seem to be in sight so be prepared for a long commitment on this one!

Kevin!!

Early morning TV...who could live without it? Well...probably me. I turned my TV on this morning, however, and Home Alone 3 was on. Imdb gives this movie 3.4 stars. Out of ten that's not so good. So I flicked onto CNN..."Britney's big comeback a complete flop" the announcer says as more urgent news scrolls along the bottom "a McDonald's burger chef may have criminal charges bought against them as a police officer who ate there said that the overly salty burger made him sick"...hmm those seem like news worthy stories. I flick over to The Today Show instead. Ah, the lovable Al Roker, he'll have something smart to say "...the fastest Chihuahua..." *click* I wonder if that kid is still Home Alone?

Find Jimmy!

Ok, i'm long overdue posting a point and click game but I really haven't played that many online recently! Here it is, it's called Find Jimmy. A fun, waldo-esque game where you have to find Jimmy's head as it appears in the picture. Made me smirk nearly everytime I found it. Enjoy!

WVU vs Marshall

Well everybody is talking about it so I thought i'd better show my support for The Herd. Go Herd!!! I hope they win this weekend, but I just hope everyone has a good experience. I can almost taste that lemonade now....

Live from Abbey Road

I was flicking through the channels last night and came across the "Sundance" Channel. I stopped when I saw the words "Abbey Road" in the title of the show and clicked "info" to see what it was. It was the kind of show I could easily watch all day long. Live performance from bands playing alternate versions of their songs in a recording studio with all their mistakes and nuances left in, and none of that over produced sound...well not much of it. I was doubly joyed to find it was a live performance from The Killers, Gnarls Barkley and The Feeling. I'm not much of a Gnarls Barkley fan but thought I had a 2 in 3 chance of hearing one of the other bands...but guess what? It was Gnarls Barkley up first. I didn't much care for the songs he played..but I'm glad kept watching and got to listen to The Killers as they played a couple of awesome versions of their own songs and Romeo and Juliet by Dire Straits. Here is a clip of the show as they play "Sam's Town" from their latest album of the same name.

Resilience

Human beings are tough. I'm not talking about Bruce Willis in Die Hard here (well, maybe in part) but I'm talking real-life tough. Firstly, our bodies are pretty darn amazing. The Merchant of Venice reads "If you prick us, do we not bleed?" whilst being true I think it could also read "If you prick us, do we not heal?". I'm talking physiologically, but also psychologically here. If you cut your finger on a knife, the body will rush into defence mode sending white blood cells to the wound and start damage control as it builds a scab to prevent infection and fights any existing infection in the wound, and then the skin begins to heal. Click here for an explanation that I didn't make up. The mind does the same thing. Once it has been damaged, it begins to heal but it is also a slow process. For example, if you have suffered a loss you feel the intense pain, sadness, anger, and grief but with time you start to feel better and overcome the loss (whilst not forgetting it, or downplaying it's significance). If you are feeling depressed, give it time and you WILL feel better. By all means, go seek someone to talk to and discuss your problems with but have faith in yourself and have hope and know that you will improve.

Thank you NEW Cingular

I guess when a big company take over another fairly big company things can go two ways. Things will get a lot better, or things will get a lot worse, plus all of the existing problems remain. Since AT&T took over my Cingular service I really hadn't seen much difference. Same calling plan, same price, some expiry of my minutes. Today, however, they crapped on me by increasing the text rate to .15c per message sent and received. I was shocked when I was told I would be paying ANY amount of money to receive a text. "What do you mean?" I said "I pay when someone else texts me, which is completely out of my control, and THEY have already paid to send the message, and I don't even get a choice NOT to receive the text??". Crazyness. When I wasn't charged to receive texts I'd feel no guilt about sending them, and hence sent twice as much so I don't really see much logic in this. Just another way for them to squeeze 5c out of me when I need to let Ms. AllClick know I'm running late. Maybe I'll call AT&T and ask them to screen my texts. I'll tell them I got a text that I didn't want and so would like a refund. I think I better read their small print.

Free information!

That's right! Free information, for your brain, in video format! Of course I'm referring to this website which provides you with free documentaries to watch on a whole load of subjects, from Mystery to Science and Biographies. There are even some documentaries from the beeb. Check it out, post haste!

Next vs The Golden Man

During the summer Ms AllClick and I took the time to see two Nic Cage films. Seems he obviously has time on his hands as his choice of movie has been a little...second rate. I enjoyed Ghost Rider, but it was pretty silly, and since Spiderman and Batman Begins have been setting a new standard for superhero movies, it fell well below these. It's one of those movies I will probably flick onto when it comes on TV and let it play in the background while i'm doing something more interesting. I did enjoy Sam Elliot though.

The other film was called Next. I was compelled to see this after I discovered it was based on a story written by one of my favourite authors Philip K. Dick. The story is called The Golden Man and I finally got around to reading it this week. Not to spoil anything but the only similarities between the two is that the main character can see into his own future. Apart from that the movie is completely different and probably would make Philip cringe. The acting was pretty poor from Nic who just seemed bewildered the whole time, despite knowing what was about to happen. I actually didn't mind the storyline so much, and I enjoyed the movie overall simply because I enjoyed thinking about having the ability to look into the future, even it was just a few minutes.
Both the film and book are completely different so I recommend reading the story if you have seen the film. I'm all for movie adaptations of Philip K. Dick stories. In my opinion the best one so far is probably Blade Runner. Minority report was also a decent movie, but both of the stories these are based on are some of my personal favs so maybe I'm biased. I wonder what story will be next.

Up Late - The Challenger

For your viewing pleasure, a clip from Episode 6 of Up Late, Marshall's very own late night talk show. This guy tries to eat Hillbilly hotdog's belly buster. It's pretty darn big so I sure hope he did his homework (e.g. ate loads of hotdogs).

Bloons Tower Defence

Ah, this was the game that first got me started on the road to....well playing MORE tower defence games. Great animation with this little thing and there are tips and comments after you complete each level. Plus, who doesn't love monkeys throwing darts. Especially that super monkey, which is a MUST for the later levels. I struggled a lot before I learnt to use a mixture of different towers..but spend your money wisely! Enjoy.

Desktop Tower Defence

Usually Ms AllClick and I rarely differ on our choice of online gaming entertainment..except with the latest craze of Tower defence games. I love them. Ms AllClick declared loudly last night that it looked very boring. I guess it's not much of a spectator sport! I was hooked after playing the Bloons tower defence but have moved onto the Desktop Tower Defence which is currently beating me like 18th century serving boy. I wish you the best of luck with it..and then please come back and give me some good advice!

I know this is late but...

Did anyone see the Bridal Gown giveaway segment they had on the "Today Show"? They had a whole bunch of wedding dresses to give away for free and then had a whole bigger bunch of brides-to-be who had to run after them and fight for a free dress. Is it me, or does this seem kind of ..sadistic..and cruel? I mean these brides really wanted these dresses and we, the viewer, were gaining entertainment pleasure from watching these ladies fight it out. I wonder what will be their next entertainment.. putting out a whole heap of booze for alcoholics :-p they wouldn't...would they?

Welcome back..to a fellow Blogger

I've certainly been slacking blogwise this month having taken a whole 10 day vacation (including weekends) and so I know it's a struggle normally to get back into the swing of posting. I think I'm still building up to that swing. Anyway, I'd like to welcome back RedZeppelin (who never really went away) and I recommend going to his blog (Destination Unknown) pronto. You can click here. Not only does he enjoy the same Food Network Chef as me (see picture) but always seem to bring up topics that I've been feeling about..or blogging about...and then writes about them in a much better way than I could! Well worth the daily read.

Snowshoe Mountain

As I continue to explore more of West Virginia I find that the state has so much to offer. It's latest offering enjoyed by myself and Lady AllClick was Snowshoe Mountain. To me, it's the perfect time of year to visit a ski/snow resort as there is no snow, no people, no crowds, no lines and no worries. The weather was perfect, nice and cool so you actually felt like being outside for more than 5 minutes, many restaurants and stores will still open and then wasn't a whole load of people moving ski's around. Apparently it is one of the top 10(0) places to see a sunset in the world which is easy to believe. I didn't get a picture of the sunset..but we did snap a few of the view up there. I fully recommend it to anyone who fancies a peaceful gettaway. Another bonus was that we were real near to Cass and Greenbank so I checked out the massive Telescope they had over there and enjoyed the free tour with real liquid nitrogen. They also have a cool room with all kinds of space/telescope related toys to play with...erm..some kid told me. oh and freeze-dried Ice Cream.

Holidays aka Vacation

Long have I heard complaints about a lack of vacation time when in England. "Look at the rest of Europe" they say, "They get many more public holidays and vacation days". It's a fact that they do, Italy averages 42 days off a year, but 21 days (in my experience 21 days, the stats say 28 days) of standard vacation time is nothing to sniff at. Not when you consider the poor yanks who not only average between 9 and 14 days off when starting a job but there is also no federal regulations requiring employers to provide vacation days. What can you accomplish in 9 days?? You are probably expected to spend some of those days with your family, other days running important errands you couldn't do while at work... it's no wonder that on average people take 8-10 days sick leave a year. I guess it probably explains why a lot of American's don't own a passport too, they just don't have the time to spend their vacation flying across the globe. So a word to all you moaning Brits (I know you're out there), there is always someone more worse off than you.

Life on Earth V1.2.

So we have lots of life on Earth now. The Population is about 6,615,939,292 so I'd say the Earth is getting pretty full. However, Top boffs (aka Scientists), have been able to manufacture their own "wet artificial life". It's pretty small at the moment, but they say if they are able to create their own life, they could start solving problems like cancer and world pollution. I've ranted on about these kinda stories before. Yes, it's pretty cool (IMHO) but again the research is years away from actually being completed so it gives us the excuse to say "Well, I'm not going to bother recycling, some scientists in white lab coats are making life forms to eat all the garbage and poop out gold." Or something similar to that.

It begs an interesting question though about the creation of life. If man can now create a new form of life, how do the religious feel about the implications? Will the life form have a soul? Will it have rights? Will it be elected President? I'm off to read the story of Prometheus. I'm pretty sure it's kinda relevant.

Wax on...

Well I had my first go at waxing a car over the weekend (along with a lot of help and instruction from Ms. AllClick). Using a medium sized buffer, some goopy white polish and then a whole heap of elbow grease rubbing the damn thing down. While rubbing wax off I remembered the Karate Kid and a smile swept across my face. I was completing my first step towards becomgin a Karate warrior..wasn't I? However, upon finishing I felt more like eating a pork chop than performing a Karate chop. Still, the car looks nice and shiny, and I feel a little more like a Karate expert. Ms. AllClick, however, reports no Karate-like powers. Now time to paint a fence...

I must have cursed it...

Man, I should have kept my mouth shut. Turns out that two days ago a Monet was stolen! I wonder what Monet would think of it. If I were a famous painter i'd probably be quite amused thinking that people would spend the time and effort and risk to go into a museum with handguns and demand a piece of canvas and some paint that i'd thrown together. How do you even sell famous paintings? I mean they are famous. It's not like getting rid of a stolen phone (i'd imagine). I think i'll stop reading the news tomorrow.

Stolen art recovered.

I'm a moderate fan of art. I like what I like. I like going to art galleries but rarely do so. If I had to say who my favourite artist was I'd probably say Monet. His work is used way too often as "Wall Filler" but it still amazes me every time I push my face up close to one of his paintings. Regardless, I am always saddened when I hear stories of art getting covered in acid (happens more than you think!) or stolen. So I was pleased to see this article today online. I'm not really a Picasso lover either, but I respect that it is respected and so it makes me happy. I think the news fails to cover a lot of the happier stories so I'm going to go fully enjoy this moment...then I'm reading " Monkey hidden in ponytail on plane". Sweet.

The County Fair

I live in Putnam County. I'm still figuring out what it means to be in a County. It's a lot different from English County's as far as I can deduce..especially as they are a lot smaller. Hence, they can have such a thing as a county fair. This was my first fair-going experience in WV and the USA so I was pretty excited. Especially as Ms. AllClick had talked about getting a "Funnel cake" for about 3 weeks previous and I was interested to sample this culinary delight. My first surprise at the fair was the price. I wouldn't say I'm particularly tight, I'm just not used to paying money to attend fairs. So I paid the $8 and strolled on in. The rest of the fair was similar to fairs I had been to before. Kids rides, some scary rides with questionable safety and a whole lot of food stands. I hadn't ever seen ATV tracks at a fair before though, and that was a big crowd puller. I stayed a couple of seconds just to see what was happening and then wandered off again. Not my thing. Then I saw something else I wasn't used to: live animals at the fair! So we wondered over and I finally got some sort of reference to the word "4-H". There were a heck of a lot of pigs, some cows, and donkeys. I'm fond of animals so I really enjoyed it. I tried to put it out of my mind that these were probably not bred just to be petted. They had some more exotic animals too, monkeys and snakes but I passed on those as I strolled over to the stage where a band were playing. Brilliant. I'd never seen that before either (at a fair). We ate our corn dogs and watched the band a while. Overall an enjoyable experience. I think the cost was about $40 for the whole night. Not bad for some wholesome entertainment..but I couldn't help thinking that I'd have probably felt better spending those $8 at the door on some of the stands that were raising money. Maybe next year I'll remember to ask where my $8 is going.

P.S. The funnel cakes were excellent.

Showdown at Marshall

No, I'm not talking about the WVU vs Marshall game which is rapidly approaching. Instead I'm talking about a much bigger showdown. Cola product vs Cola product. This morning I saw the wondrous sight ( and I probably shouldn't have been this excited) of a Coca-Cola van..on Marshall "Pepsi is all we have" University campus. The side door was open. There were Coke products stacked up on the floor. But there was no driver, or person to unload the drinks. My guess is that there is either a) a new Coke dispensing machine in the bookstore, or b) an anti-Pepsi-ite has stolen a Coke truck, driven it carefully to campus, unloaded and ran for it with as many bottles as he could. I'm hoping for a) but would love to see b) in the Parthenon. Now I just need to spend time planning the rest of my week to go around campus finding all those lovely Coke Reward codes....

The Weather

I thought I'd choose a subject that everyone likes to talk about for my first post in a little while. The Weather. I'm a big fan of talking about the weather. I'm not really an meteorologist, nor do I even watch or read the weather that often, and I rarely ever have the weather channel on (it always gives me my "local" forecast for Culloden, which I haven't even heard of) I just always think it's a perfectly fine starting place for a conversation. I don't know why it gets such a bad rap. Talking about the weather can lead to (in a conversation) a story of the hottest ever summer, or that time the snow came and I had to sleep in my car, or even a discussion about global warming. It is whom you speak to and what they have to say about the weather that really tells me a lot about the person. Either they blow it off, "yep it's hot out there" and throw you a conversation stopper, or they may reply "yep, and did you feel that breeze last night? I was out on the porch watering my plants and...". So, don't be afraid just to talk about the weather, it might bring some sunshine to your day.

Arby's is lawless

I'd like to take a moment today and vent in a George Costanza/Ross Geller way about lawlessness. Nope, I'm not talking about Xena Warrior Princess, Lucy Lawless but instead I'm referring to the lack of retribution that Arby's deal out when it comes to sandwich theft. That's right. Theft. Of sandwiches. In Arby's. In particular it was my sandwich, a beef and cheddar thingy. As I stepped up to the counter to collect my food I watched as another guy walked away with it. I wasn't completely sure it was mine...until a minute later when another sandwich was brought out that no-one claimed. A regular beef sandwich. No cheese and about 50 cents cheaper. I was pretty annoyed when I finally had to say that my sandwich had obviously been taken and wait for another to be cook. I was annoyed from waiting but also frustrated that someone would (probably) accidentally collect the wrong food..but then go ahead and eat it anyway. In reality it was only a sandwich and I only had to wait about 8 minutes longer to get my food but it still got me pretty mad. In theory it means that you can order whatever you like from the menu, then wait at the food counter, take whatever food you like and then sit down and eat it safe knowing that Arby's really doesn't care once you have paid for it. Can you imagine the same thing happening at a car dealership? It is really the principle that got me more upset than anything, so next time your in Arby's do not leave that counter and wrestle anyone who thinks their taking your food. It could be my guy.

Just a song in my head today...

Well it's friday..so here is some music. I was going to use a video of them since they have reformed...but thought the original might be best. Plus you get to check out some groovy hairdos.

It's Friday... and The Barry Gibbs Talk Show.

Time for some levity after an absence of posting. I've had this theme song stuck in my head for this week..and even though i'm not really a Justin Timberlake fan he can have his moments. Here he is..with Jimmy Fallon..."talking it up.

Edit: Video removed cause it just keeps starting up. Probably my fault...but i'm playing Quicktime :-p

Harry Potter and where the REAL magic was...

So, I went to see the latest Harry Potter flick at the Marquee Cinema in downtown Huntington recently. My "Harry Potter" fan status is such that I have never read any of the books, but have seen all the movies with a mild interest in the young wizard's exploits. This movie failed to stand out from the series. It was a fairly long "filler" tale in that you knew the enemy would not be overcome and instead this was more of a bridge to set things up for the next movie. A little like the second pirates of the Caribbean movie. A very long trailer or advertisement so that the next Harry Potter book/movie would sell way faster than it should. I felt like the other characters in the movie have been completely ignored. We know little more about Ron or Hermoine and even the relationship between them has only slightly hinted at. In fact I even found myself caring less and less about Harry as he complained and shouted his way through the movie. Maybe everything that was missing is in the book.

Regardless, the real magic was in the quality of the picture. They have installed a new digital HD projector (I'm guessing) as the movie was crystal clear. I was very impressed with the lack of grainy snow on the screen, but I also felt a pang of sadness. No more will we see those shaky lines and less-than-perfect images that remind us that we are watching fiction and not reality. No more cigarette burn in the top right, cuing us to know that there is about to be a scene change. Kids today may never get to experience such a thing and they are already missing out on the event that was "playing a VHS cassette". Forwarding through trailers, an incredibly dodgy picture at times where the tape had worn thin, pressing the "tracking" button on the remote like it was a precise military science experiment..oh and rewinding the thing afterwards WHURRRRR. One cannot appreciate a DVD till one has suffered VHS. So go witness the new HD technology at your local cinema and try to remember that moment in the future.

Small portions

This week I have eaten out at two different restaurants for dinner, so far. Due to a desire to try and eat healthier ( I almost always choose the red-est meatiest option ;-) ) and simply not being that hungry, I thought I'd try for a smaller meal than usual. The first place was an Asian restaurant so I scanned the 200 item menu looking for something small and inexpensive. 10 minutes later I still hadn't found any choices. I was either left with buying a soup, or a small appetizer. Turns out the appetizers actually only cost a dollar less than a full meal but have half the food content in them. So, of course, I ended up choosing a full meal, spending 9 dollars when I wasn't even that hungry and vowing to have something smaller at the next restaurant.

Next restaurant. My thought process was similar and went something like this:
"OK. I'm going to have something small and light. Lets look at the salads."
"Hmm The salads are 9 dollars. Maybe there is a small burger instead"
"Right. The burger is 9 dollars also..but it comes with a side? Well that's better value for my money"
"Maybe the Appetizers have something to fill me up inexpensively"
"Man, these appetizers are pricey, I may as well order a full meal"
(To Waitress) "I'll just take the soup and baked potato"

It was kind of light-ish, it was certainly "carbtastic" and it was only 8 dollars(!).

My Conclusion:

Driving to a restaurant: $5
Parking: $2
Trying to eat healthy and have a smaller portion: Priceless $8

Sixth Sense - Retro Review

I'll start with a story...

When I watched this film for the second time I was with my friend's parents, at their house, with the VHS. They were watching this for the first time and felt kind of excited. The kind of excitement you get as you watch someone opening a present that you gave them, knowing they'll love it. I was certain I would be able to relive (at least a little) my experience of watching the movie for the first time, through them. My excitement was drawing to a peak as the film ended but instantly destroyed as my friend's mother declared: "Oh I knew that was the surprise". I resisted screaming "Liar!" in her face, but kind of regret that I didn't now. Maybe she had a feeling of what was going to happen..but no-one KNEW it, did they? And if they did, I really pity them. Try watching the movie next time and not thinking about it so much.

Rather than write my usual review of the movie, I thought I'd just highlight a few thoughts and reflections I had since watching this movie again last night. It had been over 5 years since I had last seen M. Night Shyamalan's supernatural thriller "The Sixth Sense" and I felt the time had come to revisit a favourite movie of mine. If anything this film gets better with every watch, even though it really shouldn't have much replay value after the second viewing. The story unfolds in such short and bold scenes that before you have a chance to think about what you were watching you are forced to concentrate on the next compelling moment. Bruce Willis (the big star for this movie, and personal fav of mine) puts in a solid performance but is overshadowed by the young Haley Joel Osment who is able to convey so much emotion and heartache. Even whispering his famous (and much parodied) line still has the intended impact on the audience. Toni Collette is also worth commending for her role as the loving, supportive, strong mother of Cole (Osment) and the scene in the car as Cole discusses his secret with her brought goosebumps to my arms.

With setting such a high standard with his first(ish) movie Shyamalan has unfortunately suffered harsh criticism from his later movies. Constantly compared to the success of The Sixth Sense and almost living in its shadow. I think it's somewhat unfair considering Signs, The Village, and Unbreakable all had lots to offer. Perhaps it is that some may watch his films expecting straight forward Horror or Thriller and are disappointed when the film is actually about relationships, overcoming fears or problems, or the interaction of people, rather than the topic of the movie (i.e. aliens invading, or superhuman abilities).

This is certainly one of those films I wish I could experience again for the first time. I'm sure this will stand out as a classic.

M Night Shyamalan's new film "The Happening" is out June 2008.

Water out there

Anyone else think that this is the coolest thing? It's Water...on another planet! Sure it's only there as super hot steam...and it's millions of miles away..and the planet is basically a big ole ball of gas. Doesn't bother me too much, I'm still impressed..especially with the way they found it. The mind boggles.

No more Action heroes?

Whilst watching Die Hard: Live Free I felt a small pang of sadness hit me as I thought about the dying breed of the Action Hero. When you think of Action Heroes names like Rocky, Rambo, Indiana Jones, Dirty Harry, James Bond spring to mind but where are the new Action Heroes?

Maybe that is why films like Die Hard and Rocky have been able to continue in recent years due to the gap left but Rocky has almost certainly come to an end and I haven't heard any talk of another Die Hard (he can't be in the wrong place at the wrong time all the time, right?). Even Indiana Jones is returning to our screens in 2008 but what happens after that? Who will support the Action genre? Sure we still have Jason Bourne, but I've never really warmed to him as a Hero. He seems to be more of a one-man personal crusade, plus after the third installment later this year, the story will probably be wrapped up. The XXX movies with Vin Diesel and Ice Cube tried hard to be decent Action movies but failed completely and I thought the Transporter movie (the first one) put Action over plot in it's priorities and I was left not really caring about the "hero".

What actors do we even have that would suit the Action Hero role? Viggo Mortensen? Hugh Jackman (although he's already an X-man)? The mainstays of Action are slowly getting older or leaving the industry completely (come back, Arnie, all is forgiven).

The fall of the Action-Hero may also be because of the rise of the Superhero movie Genre. Who needs one man with his gun, sarcasm and two fists when we can have a flying, swinging, super strong man of steel? Perhaps this is a reflection of society. Instead of the common man making a difference personally and righting wrongs we are instead hoping for a hero to save us ( to quote from Nickelback :-/) as only someone with superhero powers can change the world.

Maybe not. At least James Bond is still kicking ass 45 years later.

Procrastination

There's an old saying that goes "Never do today what can be done tomorrow" or something like that. It's a Procrastinator's motto. I guess I've always been a procrastinator. At high school I would always finish my coursework or homework the night before class, sometimes even the day of class or in my lunch break, feeding off that last-minute-rush feel. I would get good grades and then be left with the thought "What if I actually tried to finish my work early? Could I have gotten a better grade?" But by the time the next piece of homework was due I'd forgotten this. I had even tried finishing starting my work earlier and I felt satisfied and looked at myself smugly every time I remembered it. This was fine except in my head I kept saying "I STARTED the work so don't worry about it" and then found myself swept up in that last minute rush again.

Jerry Seinfeld in one of his stand-up moments on Seinfeld talked about "Evening Jerry" and "Morning Jerry" which I fully understand and had thought about myself. This phenomenon takes place at about 11pm and you think to yourself "Shall I take out the garbage/unload the dishwasher/send those emails now...or shall I let "Morning Allclick" handle it and set the alarm early?" Needless to say "Morning Allclick" constantly complains about "Evening Allclick".

I'd like to think that I am turning over a new leaf. I am trying to do today instead of putting off till tomorrow. Results so far: Less procrastination has lead to a little less stress, but not a decrease in the amount of things I have to do.

Now, what else can I blog about before I do some work...

Huntington Wildlife - By Chris James

Blizzard Man

Sometimes I find SNL to be a little hit and miss. However, Blizzard man (and Andy Samberg) always crack me up, yet he is greatly under used on SNL. Thankfully he has his own movie coming out "Hot Rod" about a terrible stuntman. The preview I saw was very funny..but I still hope for a feature length Blizzard man.

Looks like the evil copyright monkeys swooped in and took all these clips off of YouTube...but thankfully they are still out on the "information superhighway".


Blizzard Man - The most popular videos are here

Just a thought

While walking across Marshall University's campus today I gained some insight.

When choosing a path in life, do not always pick the route that others have walked before. Make your own path. You may get your shoes muddy...but you'll get where you need to be much quicker.

Live Free or Die Hard Review

Last Friday I happened to be in the right place at the right time. Nitro Cinema, about 7:40pm ish, sitting down to watch Brucey kick some ass in Live Free or Die Hard. Silly action movie name aside this film really had a lot of good things going for it. For starters it had Bruce Willis as the love able-take-no-crap hero John McClane. I was kinda worried that he would lose his feel for the original character but my doubts were soon put aside. Sure he doesn't smoke anymore, and had cut down on his swearing but it was still the same no-nonsense, smart-talking John we had encountered before. The plot consists of some hi-tech terrorists holding America to ransom by cutting off links to technology, communication and utilities, mostly because of a grudge about the state of American Security. Along to help John is his techie side-kick Justin Long (aka "Mac" from those Apple adverts) who actually did a great job. He wasn't too annoying, or desperately trying to steal all the best lines during the film and considering his screen-time was pretty bare able. There are some really great scenes in the film which I put down to some good writing and the excellent choice to have some old-fashioned REAL stunts instead of CGI nonsense. There are also some silly scenes in the film but nothing that is far outside the realm of the "Die Hard" world and considering this is a Fourth part installation film, I let them off. A real hit summer Blockbuster that does the series proud and cinema proud.

Rating: 8/10

Comments: A pretty frightening look at our reliance on technology plus a lot of cool explosions.

My First Fourth

Whilst flicking through the various blogs I try to read daily I noticed a surprising lack of Independence day related posts. Maybe I'm just reading a little too early in the day but I had expected a bit more...patriotism, acknowledgement, comment. I had always thought that this was a big holiday. A day for celebrating everything American. As Ms. AllClick and I drove to her parents house for a "cook-out" (I usually call this kind of thing a BBQ regardless of what is actually cooked) I commented on the lack of flags and decoration on people's houses. I saw much, much more for Halloween. She agreed with my observation, stating with a sigh that "for 3 years after 9/11 everyone was patriotic and would display it at every moment they could. Now it's changed." Regardless, I enjoyed the time off, the cook-out and spending time with my girlfriend's family. We also managed to see a one or two fireworks from a distance which were impressive but then were caught in the not-so impressive traffic and torrential rain. "Never mind," I said "We can see more fireworks on Firework night."

In honour of this holiday I thought I'd go ahead and give a list of some of the things I love about America (well, West Virginia). Hopefully this will inspire some of the natives!

1. Drive-Through Banking

A genius thought of this idea! No longer must I struggle to find a place to park and then run into the bank to be held up in a queue of people wanting to exchange their million pennies for real money. My worry level of being mugged at an ATM has decreased considerably.

2. Friendliness

Regardless of where I am or what I'm doing, if i make eye-contact with a stranger I'm bound to get a friendly "hey!" or "How's it going?". It even happens when I don't make eye-contact sometimes. This is a refreshing change from a usual cold, blank stare or even the possibility of a fight that eye-contact usually meant for me.

3. Free Drink Refills

Surprisingly, I still haven't tired of this little perk at most restaurants. My teeth probably aren't so pleased. Especially with all that ice that they usually come with.

4.Leaning Chairs

These babies have the ability to turn a crappy movie into an average movie-going experience. Just lean back, put your feet up and relax. Sweet. Even better is they usually have those arms that you can move completely out of the way.

5. TV
I was never really was one to watch TV back in blighty, but my experience of the device has changed muchly since being in WV. Over a hundred channels of non-stop information, education and entertainment. Sure there is a lot of crappy television and a heck of a lot of adverts...but never before have I had access to watching Seinfeld, Family Guy, King of Queens and Scrubs episode every single day! I get my fill of education (and Mythbusters) on the History and Discovery channels (yes, I'm a geek I know) and I learn at least one cooking related thing a day from the Food Network.

Well, that's the top five. I'm sure I'll add more to this when I can...

Phantasy Quest

Phantasy Quest brings a little piratey themed adventuring into your world today (pirates seem to be all the rage at the moment). You are shipwrecked on an island and must find a way to find your woman who has been kidnapped by some no-good pirates. I welcome any excuse to say "arrr" a lot and act piratey so I enjoyed this game a lot. It has a pretty simple interface, some interesting but not too difficult puzzles and some graphics that rival the CGI in Pirates of the Carribean...if you kinda squint your eyes. It is fairly long but wont take up too much of your time. A good romp.

I'll take the room with a Lightsaber please

Looking for a new place to vacation this year? Ever thought of going to Tunisia? No, I didn't think you had. Neither had I...until I discovered that that is where Luke Skywalker lives! That's right, check out the Hotel Sidi Driss (I'm sure Uncle Owen wouldn't have approved of that name) located in Matmata, Tunisia as seen in Star Wars Episode 4. The website I found belongs to a photographer who describes the place as "Dank but cheap". I don't know about you but that sold it for me! Strangely, there isn't a Star Wars geek in any of these pictures...at least not yet.



-Another one of C3PO's bad jokes cleared out the place.



-"Luxury hotel rooms offer amenities such as: Bed, Floor and Mud. Security may be a concern."

Update: Thank you to Declan McCullagh for the piccies. They are all his. http://www.mccullagh.org/

The Heartbreak Kid - Preview

I saw a preview for this movie (The Heartbreak Kid) at the cinema this week and have to say that it looks pretty funny! It's going to be a rather silly, slapstick kinda comedy but sometimes you just need to admit you like that kind of film, sit down and enjoy not having to use your brain for 2 hours. The basic plot is that Ben Stiller plays a guy who is afraid of commitment, but finally decides to settle down when he meets the girl of his dreams. However, as soon as they are on the honeymoon all her annoying habits and quirks appear...with hilarious consequences (just adding those two words to any sentence makes the story seem funnier). Check out the clip and see what you think. It made me laugh, and it will probably be funnier (and less expensive) than Evan Almighty.