underdogishere

This morning I was driving my car and scanning through the channels on the radio, when Bonnie Tyler's Total Eclipse of the Heart came on and I heard this line:

There's no one in the universe as magical and wonderous as you.

It's true, you know. It really is.

Labels: Overheard

I'm sure the blogsphere is filled with thoughtful and emotional, and perhaps even angry, posts this Memorial Day. Mine is a little different, because every Memorial Day I am reminded that the movie Three Wishes begins on this day (at least, the flashback part, which is the bulk of the movie) and ends on Independence Day. The two holidays act as bookends for the story, and while this is just my opinion and observation, I don't think it's a coincidence that Three Wishes begins on a day of mourning, and ends on a day of celebration.

I don't have "favorite" movies, but there are those that I can watch again and again and enjoy every time, and Three Wishes is among them. I love it. I think I love it in part because I see my own youth in Tom Holman, the youngster in the movie, an underachieving outsider yearning to be one of the gang. And I love Three Wishes because I like movies that combine the natural with the supernatural or extra-natural. And I love Three Wishes because it's beautifully paced. There are a lot of people who think it's slow. Personally, I would consider regarding those people as shallow. At least when it comes to their movie tastes -- they may be exemplorary in every other way. Three Wishes isn't slow. It's contemplative, and so it moves at a contemplative pace. And the icing on the cake is that Three Wishes is so authentic to its period -- which was before mine, by the way :) And I can't bash any movie that highlights the sublime parallel between baseball and Buddhism. That alone could be the subject of a book -- even a Movement. The Dalai Lama might want to take note.

If you've never seen Three Wishes, you might want to give it a spin. If you like it, spin it again -- you'll notice a lot of clues early in the movie that don't make sense until you know how it ends. It's smart, and very well put together. Please leave me a comment to let me know what you think.

Thanks.

And thanks to the spirits of those who have died for us.

Have a contemplative Memorial Day.

Labels: Musing

I finished my discussion over on the Nero Wolfe Mailing List. It went pretty well. Hopefully I can now devote some more time to this blog. I did have an overheard this morning. I was walking through the factory and I heard a female voice say, loudly, "Yay! I mean, Whoops!"

Labels: Nero Wolfe, Overheard

After some poking around on the Internets Tubes, I've finally discovered the genesis of the skirt that I pictured in my last post (scroll down a little).

It seems that there's a new product, about to be released but still mostly secret, called Fart 'n Fly. This product plugs into -- well, you can figure out what it plugs into -- and it redirects farts downward to create thrust. After fueling up, say with a big bowl of refried black beans, the Fart 'n Fly provides vertical lift that allows one to take to the air, in pretty much the same way that Professor John Robinson used to fly with the jet pack on Lost in Space. (Speaking of Lost in Space, I have a coworker who can exactly mimic the "bloop" sound that Debbie, Penny's pet Bloop -- that thinly-disguised chimp -- made.)

Anyway, as you can plainly see, the Fart 'n Fly requires special attention to clothing. The Fart 'n Flier must leave an open path for the exhaust gasses, while still maintaining modesty. A long skirt is just the thing. But, as you can imagine, the build-up of heat is considerable. And what could be more embarrassing than having one's skirt ignite during flight?

So, those funny ruffles down the back of the skirt? Cooling fins. Take my word for it.

Labels: Stylin'

I haven't posted a Stylin' and Profiln' entry in a long time, so I humbly offer these shoes. These shoes are available as small as size 6, but their name only comes in a size 11:



These shoes are called (I kid you not): Sketchers(R) 'Bikers Sightsee' Fashion-Forward Mary Janes. I can just see some teenager shouting downstairs, "Mom! Have you seen my Sketchers Bikers Sightsee Fashion-Forward Mary Janes? Mom?"

And then there's this skirt:



I'm not sure what to make of this skirt. It seems to call more attention to the prominence of the wearer's butt than the wearer's butt may want. But more than that, in some strange way, this skirt strongly reminds me of an animal. I just can't put my finger on which animal.... A chicken? A peacock? Puff the Magic Dragon?

What do you think?

Labels: Stylin'

Tropical Storm Andrea, that is.

She might be paying a call on this area this weekend, if she follows the projected track. On the other hand, her "cones" aren't cones but complete circles (something I've never seen before), so it looks like she could go in any direction. If she seems a little indecisive, that's understandable: She's up very early. Hurricane Season isn't even supposed to start for three more weeks. I guess she didn't get the memo.

Hang on! :)

Labels: Hurricanes

BJ came to visit me in a dream last night. It was sweet. I stroked her fur and scratched her tummy. I could feel how much she loved me. Eventually, she went out in the back yard with Barkley and Andrea.

Strangely, Bailey visits me in dreams sometimes, too. Strange because Bailey was Judi's dog, not mine. But he, too, always leaves me with the gift of peace. I am left to wonder why I never have visits from Missy.

Labels: Transcendental

I heard about a year ago that "they" were intending to make a live action movie based on the old Underdog TV show. Well, now "they" have, "they" being Disney. Underdog of course is played by a beagle. Four beagles, actually. A California beagle named Leo gets most of the face shots, but three others filled in as stunt beagles, body doubles, etc. Here's the official Web site. I recommend that you watch the trailer. It's wonderful:

http://disney.go.com/disneypictures/underdog/

I love the way his ears flap when he's flying, and the way he shades his eyes with his paw. For you northern-Californians, the Gallery includes a shot of Underdog flying over a fog-enshrouded Golden Gate Bridge. Very cool. Although the one of him and the Statue of Liberty is my favorite.

I was surprised to find that Polly Prebred is played by a spaniel. I had always pictured her as a poodle.

The movie is due out on August 8th. It goes without saying that Judi and I will have to see it.

woof.

Labels: Dogs

Alas, my bro is correct that I have been very busy lately and have neglected my primary task, which is to give Evelyn updates.

Yikes! The little one turns one year old on the 17th! How in the world did so much time go by? (Gush alert). She is so cute!!! She can now stand up on her own, although she prefers to have something to hold onto. She still can't walk on her own but it isn't too far ahead. With mobility and a greater sense of self (and exploration) comes more fun than I thought possible. She is learning to modulate her voice and so we have long conversations of meaningless syllables that range up and down the scale. Or at least we try to - we usually only manage a few exchanges before we both start laughing. Her favorite games also include playing with the ball (knocking it back and forth, sometimes in our direction). We try reading to her. The books hold her attention for about 2 minutes before she is overcome by a powerful urge to find out what they taste like.

She still doesn't sleep through the night. Our latest routine is that Linda will feed her around 7pm after which I will hold her, rock her and sing until she falls asleep. It is so amazing to look into her eyes as the tiredness overcomes her and she drifts off. Usually she will end up the night in bed with us - there is little that is better than waking up in the middle of the night and seeing a perfect sleeping baby there next to you.

It has been quite a year.

Labels: Northern Bro

Now that I think about it, I believe that this is the really busy time of year for my brother in Vermont: Town Meeting.

The discussion of Rex Stout's Might As Well Be Dead is going pretty well, but, in the interest of not letting this blog stagnate, I'd like to mention a fascinating quiz that I took over at The Political Compass. The premise is that, as The Political Compass says, "The old one-dimensional categories of 'right' and 'left', established for the seating arrangement of the French National Assembly of 1789, are overly simplistic for today's complex political landscape." The quiz allows you to see where you stand, politically, in a more meaningful way. That's all I'm going to say, because the quizmasters don't want you to know too much until after you've taken the quiz. But I recommend giving it a try.

If you'd let me know how you score, by leaving a comment, by sending me a message (link to the right), or by posting on your own blog and sending me the link, I'd appreciate it. For the record, I scored -4.88, -5.44, which put me a hair to the right of and a hair below Gandhi. You'll know what I mean by "to the right of and below" when you take the quiz.

Labels: Dubya, Memes