Pricked

Okay, so today is Thursday... it seems like only yesterday it was... Thursday.  It is Thursday, isn't it?
My 2020 Roar calendar arrived yesterday.  Roar used to be Warwick Rowers.  They've grown.  Now there are coyly posed naked men from other rowing teams, as well as other sports, gracing the months, including Team Sky sports.  I was curious to see if there were any cyclists included, however this year they didn't identify the men.  At least not on the print copy.
And, speaking of cycling, I rode 20.23 miles yesterday as part of one of the challenges I need to complete to move up to Elite cyclist.  It took me 98 minutes.  My legs didn't bother me nearly as much as my butt.  Son of a bitch!  I could feel every stitch of fabric in my shorts when I was finished!
Last night I went to see "Knives Out."  It's a mystery with some serious comic overtones.  I enjoyed the film immensely.  The acting is top notch.  Don Johnson is in it.  I haven't seen him in anything for a long, long time.  He's aging well.  A clean shaven Chris Evans is here too, with really pink lips.  I'm glad to see he's getting roles outside of the 'superhero' genre.  Toni Collette is amazing as Joni, one of the siblings squabbling for a piece of the inheritance pie.  I love a good mystery, and this one's good.  There is a treasure trove of clues and red herrings which delightfully confuse and lead the viewer down the wrong garden path.  And dogs, of course, in fact, one of the first things you see are the dogs.

And I saw where Justin Timberlake made a public apology to his wife for holding hands with someone else.  Can you imagine that?  He found himself suddenly being attacked by all those social media knives.  They are now both judge and jury as to what he can and cannot do.  As I was reading that snippet, I began to wonder just who these people were, the one who dictate to Justin how he lives his life.  It took me all of about 2 minutes.  You see, right after seeing that headline, I went over to Amazon to look for a digital clock for the cycling room.  Lo and behold, they were advertising the Chris Pratt store on their Home Page.  The Chris Pratt store?  That's when I knew just who exactly Justin was afraid of... the same group who buy shit from the Chris Pratt store.  Not too smart, but easily influenced by celebrity.  The last thing their idols want is for them to pull out their sharp, little, vengeful knives.
Just like the Idiot Jerk in the White House, who for so many, many years enjoyed wielding the knife.  Now barely a minute goes by without him being pricked.

Disappointment Day

Well, yesterday was disappointing as hell, wasn't it?  Chief Justice Kennedy's announcement was quite the stunner.  Not that it came as a total surprise, there have been rumors for quite some time.  Still, the idea of the Supreme Court losing it's 'swing voter' is more than a little disheartening.  Of course, the Republicans are going to try to rush through a nominee before the Mid-Terms.  You can bet they're going to be pushing a man in his forties who has no problem shitting on women's rights. They want another Neil Gorsuch who will give Conservatives what ever they want.  This is how they say "fuck you" to the majority of people in this country.  For all you voters who sat home in 2016, those of you who thought your vote didn't matter, or who believed Hillary had it in the bag - this is your payday.  This is what your apathy is depositing into your account.  Same sex marriage?  You know they're going to go after that, chipping that right to bits and pieces.  If you didn't vote and are beginning to get worried - good, this is the price you pay for staying home.
And is if that wasn't disappointing enough, I went to see "Jurassic World, Fallen Kingdom" last evening.  I'd watched a video in which some guy said he thought the whole movie was sad.  He was wrong.  This latest installment isn't said, it's cynical as hell.  I'm suspecting this might be the middle part of a trilogy which will end on a brighter note.  But, even if that's the case, there were some serious problems, like predictability, and lack of originality.  There's a dumbwaiter scene lifted straight from the script of Jurassic Park.  Right from the beginning there are problems.  A volcanic eruption is threatening to destroy all life on the island.  Spoiler alert.  At the height of the eruption, an aerial shot proves the island is much, much bigger than the eruption, that you'd actually need some sort of Krakatoa event to destroy all life.  About 20 minutes in, you realize the writers decided to cobble most of the script from a discarded draft of Jurassic Park 2.  Chris Pratt was fine, but not as funny.  He evidently realized the best parts of this film, were the clips they used that were supposed to be from the first Jurassic World.

As I said, this movie wasn't as sad as much as it was cynical.  Of course, we're all going to become a lot more cynical when the new, conservative justice takes his seat at the Supreme Court.

Dirt

So, here it is Monday, the start of the work week... but not for me.  This is day number 5.  Tomorrow will be day number 6.  Of course, I have off for 9 days after tomorrow and to be perfectly honest, the idea has occurred that perhaps my back might be in a weakened state tomorrow morning and I might have to make it 10 days off... in a row.  I do get these notions from time to time but rarely follow through... mostly because I hate using my personal time.  This is not the case for other people.  Yesterday, for example 2 of my fellow associates called off leaving me by myself in a department that's supposed to be double staffed.   There was much fun and hilarity... well, not exactly, but I did survive.
Politically speaking, yesterday seemed to be pretty quiet - the Idiot Jerk is on vacation but we know that's horseshit.  He's going to be doing what he always does, sit on his dais waiting for his supporters to kiss his ring... oh, and watching Fox News, the only major media outlet to kiss his ass.  In fact I do believe they're all on vacation, all of those GOP sycophants gone home to their hate hovels to brood about September when more shit is going to hit the fan.  Sure, they say they're going to come back and work on Tax Reform (that's what they call tax cuts for the 1%), but that will never happen.   What they're really going to be doing is working on funding the government because it's "running out of money."  Catchy phrase, isn't that?  "Running out of money."  Almost musical.  "Running out of money."  A taunt, almost toward the party that fails to govern.
Oh, and I see Chris and Anna are splitting up.  Supposedly social media is going crazy...  prioritizing the breakup of a celebrity marriage over every thing else that's going on in the world.  Now, I'll be the first to admit that since Chris has lost weight and starting hitting the gym he's transformed himself in a ginger extraordinary...  but his getting a divorce just turns he and his wife into ordinary people... unless there's dirt... and then they're just ordinary people with dirt.

Ah well, time to head off to the store.

Christmas Movie Season Failure

Well, the Christmas movie season is upon us and once again I'm dumbfounded by studios who seem to think this is the best time of the year, other than summer, to release big budget films because they simply don't understand that a movie like "Rogue One" is going to totally dominate the box office.  This happens every year and nobody seems to learn.  Last year Disney dropped "Into the Woods," a Disneyfied version of a Broadway show in which practically anybody with lines dies by the end, thinking it would be great family entertainment.  Wrong.
This year we've got "Passengers," a Sci-fi, rom/com, thriller with bad reviews from Sony / Columbia.  Didn't anyone at that studio get the memo stating that the Sci-fi and thriller bases were already covered by "Rogue One?"  And we've got "Assassin's Creed," another movie which is getting bad reviews, also in the competition, being released by Fox.  I suspect that studio thought that kids will be home from school, and kids are gamers and that will make it a sure thing.  They evidently didn't get the memo detailing how the average age of a gamer, in the United States, is 38 years of age.  We are adults, with full time jobs.  We are not in Junior High, or High School.  "Rouge One" was out of the gate a whole week before you... who do you think's going to win the race?
And theaters don't help one bit.  At my local Carmike Cinema, "Rogue One" has 15 shows per day.  That's right, 15.  "Passengers" and "Assassin's Creed" have 5 each, as does "Manchester by the Sea," a little movie which is expected to dominate Award season.

"Assassin's Creed" had an original release date for back in November, a slot that would have been better, when it wouldn't have had needed to go head to head with "Rogue One."  And "Passengers?"  I'd have released that baby in February, when it's cold and dark, and the pretty faces of Chris Pratt and Jennifer Lawrence would have been flickering candles and we all could have been moths.

And you'll notice I didn't even mention "La La Land."

If you go yo an evening feature, the cost of the ticket, and the snacks (popcorn and soda for me) are going to run you at least $20.  What studio moron doesn't understand that when a monster blockbuster gets released, like "Rogue One" it's going to beat you over your box office head with a shit stick.  This means plan accordingly.

Jurassic World - an 'A' ride

I went to see "Jurassic World" last evening and liked it... a lot.  Looking at how much it's making at the box office, quite a few people are really liking this movie, too.  One of the things I found super neat was they way they embraced the original "Jurassic Park" so thoroughly.  I'm sure everybody in that theater has seen the original and there are scenes where the old film and the new film are juxtaposed so perfectly you could feel it in the air.  Think of it as electrically charged nostalgic memories of "I remember that."

This is not to say it's a perfect movie, it isn't.  There are some... plot holes.  There was a moment when my friend leaned over and asked "where'd that raptor come from?"  Of course I didn't need to answer because the raptor did what raptor's do, and in that finger snap of a moment the story had moved on.
For all those Chris Pratt fans out there, you'll be pleased to know he does an outstanding job of doing what he's supposed to be doing, anchoring this film.  Those times when he isn't on the screen are a bit wobbly, but then he enters the scene and everything stabilizes.  If you haven't seen it, then go see it.  In my book it's an 'A' ride ticket.

The Guardians Ride On

I went to see Guardians of the Galaxy last evening.  Usually, when a movie opens and there is hype out the kazoo, I end up being disappointed.  This was not the case.  Word of mouth was right, which is why it's raking in the big bucks.  This is surprising for a couple of reasons:  1. Movies released this late in the summer are usually not expected to have blockbuster status because they tend to have flaws (perhaps the studio execs couldn't see Chris Pratt as a leading man).  2. School starts soon, which means less time for the kids to hit it twice.  3. By this time those films expected to be heavy hitters have already knocked the buckos out of our pockets.  The last time I checked, Box Office Mojo hadn't posted Wednesday's ticket sales but Monday's and Tuesday's totals tally up to over $23 million.  If this keeps up, Guardians of the Galaxy will most likely cross the $200 million mark sometime late Saturday afternoon.

The Guardians Ride On

There were about 100 + at last nights 9:05 showing, and they were all ages, and they all seemed to be having a good time.  While so many films try and connect with the audience and fail, this one succeeds.  I think it's odd when you hear people singing along with a soundtrack and it happened last night.  There are also times when there are some really funny bits.  This is another way where the movie connects.   Where an alien does not understand something, we as earthlings understand it extremely well because Chris Pratt is speaking in a language only earthlings know.  And, of course, there is Groot.

I will admit that discovering Amy Pond, from Dr. Who fame, is, in reality, an alien named Nebula came as a bit of a shock.  I wonder if Rory knew?

Amy Pond revealed!!

Having seen a number of films so far this year, it's obvious to me that Guardians of the Galaxy will ride  on into Cinematic History.  It wouldn't surprise me if it turns out to be the biggest money maker this year.  That would be two... or is it three years in a row for Disney.