Tuesday, January 30, 2007

Microphones, Mucus, and Milestones

Hello everyone who is reading this! And only to you. The rest of the people out there really don't matter. . . Actually that would be a lot of people. . . I take back that first part then.

Anywho, it's Tuesday night and I have to work in the morning. I actually have to work the next three mornings. That's a good thing actually. So, in the words of a country song that I have heard the last few mornings when I wake up, "There's a lot of things I don't have to do. I get to." I don't know who sings this song, and I don't necessarily like it, but that line kinda resonates with me. How many daily activities are there that we say we "have to do"? Why don't we say things like "I get to fill my car up with gas" (an obviously unenjoyable experience but one that only occurs if one owns their own car, which is something to be grateful for!) or "I get to work today" (meaning of course that you are employed, which is something that not everyone can say)? Just a thought. Call it an insightful insight. . . (Remember that everyone???)

Moving on, I am sick. I picked up the head cold that seems to be going around whenever it is least desireable to have. I think I picked it up sometime Saturday because I woke up on Sunday and I felt like absolute crap. And that was my Heather day!!! Well I spent most of my time with her either coughing or blowing my nose, which was unfortunate. Either way, I almost called in sick on Monday and ended up sleeping most of the afternoon. I even skipped bowling on Monday night because I felt so bad. I ended up with several dayquils and a couple nyquils in my system before the day ended and I woke up this morning feeling a tad better. Not perfect. Just better. I dislike so much the common cold! Why can't it be called the "damn near irrelevant cold" because it's never around!?!?! That would be nice! But instead we are stuck with the almost full assurance that the stupid virus/bacteria/crap will strike us at least one time a year! That is, unless we're Bob Barker! Have you seen this guy? He has not taken a day off in like fifty years! That's why he's retiring at the end of this year! So he can get sick! I have you figured out Plinko-man!

Anyway, so I haven't been feeling well. And the funny thing is that I was just looking at my very own archives (a feature of this blog that I enjoy utilizing) and I was sick at the same time last year! I got my wisdom teeth taken out the end of 2005 and then was sick for over a month and into late January of 2006! Bizarre, huh?

(O, by the way, it is now midnight on the 31st, which means that it is officially mine and Heather's third anniversary! Balloons, streamers and confetti!!)

This evening was Senior Night at Desert Christian High School. This is the final home game of the regular season and an opportunity is given to the seniors to give out a thank you to their parents in front of everyone. Well, in order to do this, a microphone must be plugged in and the sound board must be used. I have been imploring the athletic director, Mr. Dean Spoelstra, to allow me the opportunity to announce the guys games. "Announcing" essentially means calling out the starting lineups and then doing a kinda play-by-play (saying "So-and-so for two" when a basket is made and stuff like that). Apparently the music teacher did not want her sound board messed with, so they could never allow me to do that. Well tonight it was hooked up! I took that chance and ran with it! I immediately asked Mr. Spoelstra if I could announce the guys game and he agreed! I figured it would be a great chance for practice and a way to see if I was any good at something that I hope to be a part of my future. In a nutshell, I loved it! I thought I did a good job and everyone I talked to after the game agreed with me and gave me kind words of encouragement. I'm hoping for at least one home playoff game so I can do it again, but we'll see. I loved every second I was doing it and I wasn't even nervous once I began talking. I was born to talk about basketball. Let's juse see if I am going to actually fulfill that destiny. . .

Well, now that it is 0025 and it is definitely my anniversary, I would like to say a few words about my wonderful Heather! This is how much she loves me: (a direct quote from a text she sent me back in November) "It's like when you draw a graph and the arrows on the ends of the lines imply they go on forever. . . like that :)" How lucky am I???? I was just thinking about an "It's A Wonderful Life" situation with me. If I had not hypnotized Heather three years ago, what kind of person would I be? Would I be happy? Would I be career-and-goal-oriented? Would I be dating lots of girls or would I be alone every Friday and Saturday night? Would I have more money? (The answer to that one is YES!!!) But all that aside, I know for a fact that I would be in no way better off if the wonderful Miss Heather Acuff had not said yes to me three years ago. If she had of pushed my hand away in that cold suburban driving through the streets of Tiajuana, Mexico (For the whole story of how we got together, head here), then I would be in a much worse position than I am at this point. I am forever thankful for the role she has in my life and I am never burdened by the fact that I have a girlfriend. I am always challenged, always tested, and never right (actually, sometimes I am - - o wait, that's just a mirage!!!). But I have a companion. I have a buddy. I have a friend. I have a mate. I have a beautiful young woman by my side and hopefully in three years time, we will not only share jokes and ideas of the future, but also a last name and an address. I love you Heather. Forever 11:11!

Goodnight everyone - - -

Sleep well and have a good Wednesday!

Saturday, January 27, 2007

A Summary And Just A Summary.

I will try my best to get you an update (meaning lengthy and with opinions and insights) but until then, allow me to list for you the things that I have done over the last week or so. . .

- APPLY DIRECTLY TO THE FOREHEAD, the team made up of myself, Justin Lebens, and Cy Serrano, auditioned for the chance to make it to the World Series of Pop Culture. We failed. . . Unfortunately, those in charge were taking very few teams (only 2 teams out of 20 or so in our room moved on to the second step) so we were not as disappointed. But we still were.

- I saw THE SHINS, an indie rock band that I love, for free at Amoeba Music in Hollywood. They were awesome!

- I saw SMOKIN' ACES, the number one film on my FIRST-THIRD MOVIE PREVIEW. And it too was awesome! I loved every minute of it! This being the first film released in 2007 that I have seen, it obviously is the best film thus far of the year in my mind. But it just might keep that title for most of the year (if not all the year!). All in all, I loved it! (Grade: A)

- My Phoenix Suns have now won 16 straight games, a franchise record. The only other teams that have had two 15-plus winning streaks in the same season were two Chicago Bulls teams that went on to win the NBA Championship. I have high hopes now. . .

- I bought a retro Kevin Johnson jersey on EBAY. It arrived last week. It was worth the price I paid. . .

- O, and you should by the new SHINS album. It came out on Tuesday and that's why they performed at Amoeba in the first place. Promotion. Isn't it great?

- I'm going to see Heather tomorrow!!!!!!!!!!!

- If you would like to know how my day with Heather was last Sunday, then head to Heather's MYSPACE blog - - she occasionally posts thoughts here and whatnot - -

- I really miss seeing Heather. Once a week (at the most) is growing old for me. It's just not what I want. . . Call me old fashioned.

- Been working kinda consistently at the FL. It's cool. Still happy with my decision. . .

- If Mallory Jill Roseborough is reading this, I hate you - - (not really, but. . . actually, yes, yes I do)

I'll do my best to post again soon - - - but I'm busy. So we'll see :D

Later all - - -

Tuesday, January 23, 2007

The First-Third Movie Preview

Ok, I know I haven't posted in quite some time, but I am gonna try to do something about that tomorrow. . . We'll see.

Until then, I figured it was about time to get the much-anticipated (Right???) movie preview of mine out to you all! I had originally planned out 25 films, but after looking at plots, trailers, and just thinking about it some more, I altered the list to feature 15 films (But really cuz I'm kinda lazy!)

So here we go - - Enjoy!!!

15. LUCKY YOU (03/16) The film that just can't get a release date! You may remember this film appearing in my REST O' THE YEAR MOVIE PREVIEW back in August, and I had talked about its delay at that time too. As I said back then, "Eric Bana (MUNICH) stars as a Poker player who runs into all sorts of personal demons at the World Series of Poker when his dad (Robert Duvall), also a professional player, shows up and brings with him all sorts of fun memories. Director Curtis Hanson (L.A. CONFIDENTIAL, 8 MILE) has promised that it's not all about Poker, but about people and conflict and all that good stuff." I just really hope they release it this time! TRAILER

14. THE HOAX (04/06) Richard Gere plays a cocky writer (true story) who gets the media all riled up over a book that he wrote. He claims it's an "autobiography" of Howard Hughes based on his multiple in-person interviews and such, but he's full of it! The last time we saw Gere in a role like this, he was tap-dancing to perfection in CHICAGO. Let's hope he has the same success here! TRAILER

13. PRIDE (03/23) Terrence Howard is the man. With his great acting prowess (See: HUSTLE AND FLOW, CRASH) and his incredible screen presence, I am desiring to see this potentially-inspiring film about an inner city (Philadelphia) swim team that is begun by an oppotunistic man (Howard). Yet another in the long line of sports films centered around high school and college kids, but Howard's presence is enough for me. TRAILER

12. BREACH (02/16) Although Hollywood has, in my opinion, scraped the last out of the frequented barrel of espionage films, this upcoming film is attempting to do something a little new (one can only hope). I love the casting of Ryan Phillippe and Chris Cooper. I like the tension-filled trailer. The story seems interesting enough (aren't true stories usually pretty interesting - - wow, three straight "based on a true story" films. . .). I have my fingers crossed. TRAILER

11. CATCH AND RELEASE (01/26) This romantic comedy is out this Friday, and the only reason I want to see this is Kevin Smith. The director (who, if you remember, I met in November!) is one of my favorites in Hollywood, and he is acting in this film. He is not Silent Bob, either! He plays the friend of a woman (the always likeable Jennifer Garner) who is dealing with the sudden death of her fiance'. She of course learns life lessons, deals with her issues, and probably falls in love again, this time with her fiance's irresponsible, but strangely loveable friend (just a prediction). I'll be there for Kevin. What will you be there for is the question that the moviemakers are banking on. TRAILER

10. GHOST RIDER (02/16) One of my all-time favorite actors, Nicolas Cage, takes on the role of the comic book character who made a deal with the devil forever ago and must now live in that world between ours and the spirits'. Sounds a little bit like CONSTANTINE, the okay-Keanu Reeves film from a couple years ago, but this time he changes into a skeleton (with a flaming head no less) and rides a motorcycle! The effects do look cool and Cage's oddities are perfect for a role like this, but let's just hope for less Eva Mendes speaking and more Eva Mendes looking good. That and a real plot. . . TRAILER

09. TMNT (03/23) Yes, that's an acronym. It stands for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, baby! The crime-fighing "heroes in a half-shell" from my younger days are back in an animated film that looks really fun and undoubtedly entertaining! Some of the voices (not of the turtles, but of other characters) include: Kevin Smith, Patrick Stewart, Chris Evans, and Sarah Michelle Gellar. It's not about them, though. The turtles (Michelangelo, Raphael, Leonardo, and my favorite, Donatello) are just as cool as they used to be and don't think you can convince me otherwise! Can't wait! TRAILER

08. RENO 911!: MIAMI (02/23) The fantastically funny Comedy Central television show has now been expanded for the world of cinema. Essentially, this is just a long, uncensored version of an episode of the show that has parodies COPS for the last three seasons. It looks very funny (I'm a fan of the show, though) and I'm looking forward to see how much like the show it really is going to be. The shot of Deputy Junior falling into a beached whale (yeah, you read that right) gets me everytime! Plus, Paul Rudd is the "villain" and that spells hilarity in my mind! TRAILER

07. THE NUMBER 23 (02/23) In a promotional move that rivals the release of last year's THE OMEN on June 06 (06/06/06), the new film from the much maligned Joel Schumacher is being released on a day matching the title. In this psychological thriller starring (wait for it) Jim Carrey, a man (Carrey) begins to delve a little too deep into the role the number 23 has in his life and it begins to take him over. It's hard to explain, but watch the trailer and you'll understand better. It's an odd turn (but a great one, in my mind) for Jim Carrey and I'm looking forward to the results! TRAILER

06. SUNSHINE (03/16) The new film from Danny Boyle (28 DAYS LATER, TRAINSPOTTING) is a science fiction adventure about a group of astronauts who are travelling to the sun. Cillian Murphy (RED EYE), Chris Evans (FANTASTIC FOUR), and Rose Byrne (TROY) are all starring in what can only be described as an artistical vision from a mastermind director. Boyle can do no wrong in my book (I even enjoyed the tedious-at-times MILLIONS) and I'm really anticipating this one! TRAILER (At the bottom of the linked page)

05. HOT FUZZ (03/09) The weekend that this comes out is the best film weekend of the year! Along with this comes the release of the number two film on this list (and the number three film comes out the week before!). I'll be doing a lot of movie-watching over those two weeks! This film is the follow-up for the creators of the fabulous SHAUN OF THE DEAD. The British filmmakers (including stars Simon Pegg and Nick Frost and director Edgar Wright) are brilliant and the trailer alone has me clutching my stomach in laughter-induced pain. In this send-up of every cop/action movie that has been made, Pegg plays an expert cop who gets sent to work at a serene town that oddly becomes the host to a series of murders. How does that not sound great?!?!? TRAILER

04. GRINDHOUSE (04/06) The greatly-anticipated combination of films by friends and cohorts Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez finally hits the big screen. It is a tribute to the exploitation films of the 70's and 80's (zombie films, slasher horror movies) that were often viewed as double features. Rodriguez's "Planet Terror", a zombie horror film will play first and will be followed by some faux-trailers to fake movies directed by some big names (HOT FUZZ's Edgar Wright is one and apparently Rob Zombie, Eli Roth, and both Tarantino and Rodriguez did their own as well). Then Tarantino's "Death Proof" will end the show telling the story of a murderer who chases people around in his stunt car. If you are a fan of either men (of which I am a big fan of both) or the types of movies that they love, thus they tribute to them, then you should be there in April! TRAILER

03. ZODIAC (03/02) The return of David Fincher, the incredible director of SEVEN, FIGHT CLUB, and THE GAME. In this one, he is telling the story of the police officers and detectives in San Francisco who attempted to track down the so-called Zodiac Killer back in the 60's and 70's. An all-star cast, including Jake Gyllenhaal, Mark Ruffalo, and my favorite actor of all-time, Robert Downey Jr. headline the already-anticipated film. I can't wait!!!!!! TRAILER

02. 300 (03/09) No words can really describe how this trailer makes me feel. Slightly resembling SIN CITY and kinda reminding me of TROY (just because of the role of Sparta), this film looks like a better film then both of those decent films. By a landslide! Gerard Butler (the Phantom in 2004's PHANTOM OF THE OPERA) is the main character, but it is the incredible visuals that are drawing me to this bloody, gruesome epic film. I have watched this trailer over 10 times and it does the same thing for me everytime! Wow! See for yourself: TRAILER

01. SMOKIN' ACES (01/26) Just like in my SUMMER MOVIE PREVIEW, the first big film of the season is the one that I want to see the most. Joe Carnahan (NARC) is directing this film about a bunch of hitmen trying to take out one snitch (the brilliant Jeremy Piven). Carnahan has a crazy way with the camera (just watch NARC) and his grittiness and demeanor are sure to be shown in this film. A fun cast (including Ray Liotta, Andy Garcia, Ben Affleck, Ryan Reynolds, and Alicia Keys, in her first film role) and a great plot make this my most-anticipated film of the next few months. I will be viewing it this Friday with Cy and Justin after our audition for the WORLD SERIES OF POP CULTURE, so expect a review of sorts on it this weekend! TRAILER

So there it is! Hope it was as good as the previous ones. Nay, I hope it was BETTER!!!

Happy Movie Watching!

Saturday, January 13, 2007

A Youtube Essay

I got called into work yesterday (1000-1600) and then both teams played a home game against Boron (both victories thank you very much).

Thursday I didn't do much, but the one thing I didn't do was my FIRST THIRD MOVIE PREVIEW that I keep hyping but never following through on. . . Soon. I promise.

And it's now 1100 on Saturday morning and I'm heading to work in an hour. So I wanted to provide some videos that I have watched over the last couple days or just some things that I found interesting over on the wonderful internet site known as YOUTUBE.

Enjoy!

- Donald Trump hammering Rosie O' Donnell on THE INSIDER. This is quite possibly the funniest thing I have ever heard.



- Stephen Colbert toasting (or roasting???) President George W. Bush at the White House Correspondent's Dinner in 2006. (In three parts)







- The Daily Show summing up President George W. Bush's speeches



- Bud Light's recent commercial. Two words: Rubber Floor.



- Fatboy Slim's "Weapon of Choice" video. Maybe the best music video ever.



- This is no longer a lion. This is just a big cat.



- THE WICKER MAN was a comedy??? Movie fans watch this one!



And finally. . . Charlie the Unicorn. Need I say more?



Thanks everyone - - have a good Saturday!

Wednesday, January 10, 2007

The Champ Is Here

Good evening internet perusers! Welcome yet again to my humble abode on the great world wide web. It's been a couple days, so I'll bring you right up to speed. . .

It's already Wednesday! It feels like just yesterday I was sitting down at my computer typing out what was my 200th post here. That was actually three days ago and so much has happened since then. So let's get right to it. . .

I worked again on Monday at the FL, making it seven straight days at the ol' shoe store. None of the days were over six hours, but it's still a big deal that I worked so many days in a row. I think. Either way, I left there and headed straight to practice, where I spent only about an hour. The girls were going to watch film from the Paraclete game (assumedly - I don't actually know) and I didn't find it completely necessary for me to be there. I left and headed out to Casita Lopez, my recent craving, to get myself some dinner. I came home and ate my burrito while watching some of the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl (live from Glendale, Arizona) that featured the undefeated number one team in the country (Ohio State) against the underdog, one-loss Florida Gators. No one was giving Florida a chance. So what did they do? They absolutely destroyed the Buckeyes. Final score: 41-14. Congrats Gators on a great victory - I was pulling for you all the way!

I went bowling on Monday night (from 2100-2330) and it was a return to form - the champ had returned. After embarassing myself by losing to my comrade Chris on Sunday (5 games to 4 - I was ridiculously inconsistent) I came out like never before, winning all five games in impressive fashion. My first three games resulted in a 524 series, by far the best three-game series of my brief amateurish career. My best game was a 182 (not the best) but it was my consistency that I liked. I never bowled under 140 and my average was 166 over six games. It was definitely what I needed after Sunday night.

Tuesday was my first day off in what felt like forever. I slept in and then headed to the local Barber Shop and had someone chop off all of my scraggly hair. I was well overdue - about a month late. I now have returned to being "Heather's Marine" (hey, it's the closest I can actually get to being such a stud) and will remain so for another month or so when my hair grows back. No, I'm not shaved (bald, whatever). The correct terminology is a number three blade all over. There you go. Now you can visualize it. . .

League play began on Tuesday and it required us to drive all the way out to Lucerne Valley, a place that no one should have to visit. It took us two hours to get out there. At least I was able to begin my new book, Chuck Palahniuk's Haunted. This is the author of the novel Fight Club, which of course inspired the great film of the same name. So far it is a very odd book, but I'm really getting into it. I'll let you know how it is as I go further (I'm barely 50 pages in).

Well it turns out that the Lucerne Valley girls basketball team is not made up of the sharpest tools in the shed. Academic ineligibility left them to bring up the JV girls to the varsity level, thus leading us to an extremely easy victory. The girls won 50-9 in what could have been a much worse defeat had we not pulled it way back. The guys also won (59-41) making both defending champions 1-0 in their title defense. Congrats players - come ready on Friday!

I woke up early this morning and headed into work at 1000. We were so unbelievably slow, but one lady presented myself and my associate manager Romique with a story that we were talking about all shift. This hispanic woman walks in and sees myself (an obviously white male) and Romique (a tall, black male) standing there ready to help her out. The first words out of her mouth: "Where are the other guys. . the Latinos?" Now this is usually not a problem. Often times there will be customers who come in who speak only Spanish. This was not that case. She spoke lots of English and apparently one of the other sales associates (apparently a Latino has she put it) had given her a discount or something the last time she was in. She preceded to try to tell us how we were wrong with everything that we offered on her exchange. At the end, after I had tried to be nice to her, she told me I had an attitude with her. Whatever. Then she asked us when the "other guys were coming in". We told her 1400 and she said she would be returning then (which she didn't) because they "knew more". She left having not only put us both in a bad place, but she left using profanities ("that shoe looks like shit", "hell no", etc.) in a public place.

Ok, listen bitch. For one, once we told your amigos about your idiocy, he regretted helping you out in the first place. Secondly, you don't know more than us. I have only been working there for a month and I know oodles more than you about these shoes here. Thirdly, not all Pumas are priced the same!!! (This was something she could not grasp) And lastly, as a courtesy to not only the employees of the store, but also to other customers, stop using profanity in the store. If you want to use it in your home, go for it. If you want to tell your kids certain things and just can't get that oomph across without it, then it's your perrogative. And if you have your own blog, guess what? You can do whatever the hell you want! See? But keep you stupid voice down when you have no other intelligent things to say but curse words. It makes you sound like some of our other customers who are just loud and profane themselves. So next time you want a discount, go to Foot Locker and talk to some of your homeys over there, because as far as Romique and I are concerned, you're toast honey. Thanks for shopping at Finish Line. Have a nice day. Now get the hell out. . .

On to some much nice news. . . I left work around 1515 and headed over to Heather's house. Why? Well my baby needed to come home tonight to pick up a text book that had been sent to her house. And even though we only got to see each other for an hour, it was the best hour of the week. We won't be able to see each other again until Sunday (I'll be heading down to CPP on Sunday to have a date night!) so it was a nice midweek surprise!

I could have gone to practice tonight, but I decided to skip it tonight. I needed a me break. Instead, I read some more in my book and then popped in ALI, a film that I have had for about two weeks from NETFLIX. The 2001 film starring Will Smith as the famed pugilist was really long, but I felt was really well done. I loved the Fresh Prince as Ali and loved Jon Voight as the famed sportscaster Howard Cosell even more. (Grade: B)

A quick note about Muhammad Ali. There are athletes that we all get the honor to watch. My generation has been able to grow up on Michael Jordan, Tiger Woods, and Ladanian Tomlinson. The 80's crowd had Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, Joe Montana, and many others. And a little bit further back there were the greats: Bill Russell, Johnny Unitas, Jack Nicklaus. However, with all those names up there, the one sports figure that I wish I could have watched live and in person was Muhammad Ali. Now, I am not a boxing fan. I really don't get my ya-ya's by watching two men beat the living crap out of each other. But if Ali was anything like the character that Will Smith portrayed (and I'm sure the film just touches the tip of the iceberg) then I would have loved this man. A man with principles (he was a strict Muslim), beliefs, and a quick wit to go alone with his huge mouth that he never seemed to close. He was Terrell Owens, Deion Sanders, and Ron Artest put together, but with a respect for his sport and his opponents (who he always claimed to be uglier than him). This man was quite possibly the greatest boxer ever (I won't argue it cuz I don't know) but most certainly one of the most recoginzeable men in history. Who couldn't name him if given this picture and a question of who it was:























I vote very few could not name the man taunting his fallen opponent (Sonny Liston for you who don't know that name). Thanks goes out to Michael Mann for showing a generation like mine a figure like that. I got 2 1/2 hours of Ali tonight. I wish I could have had 2 1/2 decades like those who grew up with him. . . I guess I'll settle for Lebron, Roger Federer, and Derek Jeter. Dangit. I got screwed. . .

Well that's quite enough for tonight. I hope you enjoyed my ramblings this evening. . .

Hit me up with some thoughts on this one - -

Thanks to all you readers out there! Your patronage is always welcome!!!

- - - "Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee.
His hands can't hit what his eyes can't see."

- - - Muhammad Ali

Sunday, January 07, 2007

The Week Grab-Bag: The Bicentennial Version

Welcome everyone to the 200th post in the history of A RAMBLER'S RAMBLING! I really can't believe that I've made it this many posts! Thanks to everyone who has stuck with me all 200 times I've published my thoughts onto this website and to all those who this is their first experience with my writing. I hope I'm around for another 200!

On another note, I am not really sorry that it's been since the first of the year that I've posted. Not only have I worked every single day since 01/01, I have been to every practice and game that the girls basketball team has had. I have been a very busy bee to say the least.

So without further ado, allow me to get to my week in review, also known as the WEEK GRAB-BAG. Veterans of ARR, rest assured that the following will be in all ways non-chronological!

- I have been working my tiny white ass off at the FL. In fact, when I go into work in the morning, that will be my seventh straight day being at the FL. Three of those days I had off, but was either called in (and could not say no because I'm trying to make a good impression, which, lo and behold has worked - my GM moved my status from seasonal to permanent!) or were covered shifts for someone else. After further review of the job, I'm still happier than I ever was at JC. It is head and head and shoulders above that awful restaurant. And yes, as I mentioned before, the money is not nearly as good at the FL. But you know what? I don't care. Sure, it's going to be a little tougher on me financially (especially after I spent over $600 on Christmas and Heather's birthday - the 27th of December - combined) but I'll deal with that when I need to. Right now, I'm content, and you really can't ask for more than that!

- On Tuesday of this week, league play begins for the Desert Christian basketball teams. The girls come riding in with a record of 8-3 and winning for reasons that escape us coaches. We defeated Paraclete in the most hyped game of the year (we won by 3 in a tight game, so I guess it was worthy of all the hype) and that's an outstanding lead-in to league.

- My plan in the morning is to head to AVC and more specifically the transfer center to get them to send my nearly-final transcript to CSUN. With this submission, I will be admitted into CSUN for the fall semester of 2007. And so the fun begins. . .

- I have been bowling a little more recently and I'm continuing to proudce excellent scores. I recorded a brand new high score (219!) and my average is now usually over 160 (although my most recent night gave me a 155 average). The last time we went, Chris beat me for the first time (5 games to 4) and I did not take it very well. I bowled another game by myself, recording a 180, just to prove to myself that I could still do it. I'm such a bad loser. . .

- The amount of 2006-released films that I saw now sits at 50 and what follows is going to be a list of them with the letter grade that I gave it. Anything that received a (B-) or higher is a film that I would recommend. The others are not necessary to be seen, but have some merit (although the ones at the bottom have no recommendable factors at all). I divided them up into groups by the grade they got with no order necessarily in their groups. The films in italics are comedies are graded on a different scale so take that into consideration too. . . So here you go:

(A+)
None

(A)
Stranger than Fiction
Little Miss Sunshine
Thank You For Smoking
Casino Royale

(A-)
The Illusionist
Mission:Impossible 3
Lucky Number Slevin
V For Vendetta

(B+)
The Descent
The Departed
The Prestige
Clerks 2
Dave Chapelle's Block Party

(B)
Jackass Number Two
The Last Kiss
Wordplay
The Da Vinci Code
Happy Feet Over the Hedge The Break-Up
Slither
Snakes on a Plane

(B-)
The Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest
Cars
Superman Returns
Final Destination 3
The Holiday The Devil Wears Prada
A Scanner Darkly
Saw III
Night at the Museum
Idlewild

(C+)
Hollywoodland
My Super Ex-Girlfriend American Dreamz
Inside Man
Lady in the Water

(C)
Ask the Dust
Curious George

(C-)
Brick
Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby
X-Men: The Last Stand
The Omen
Scary Movie 4

(D+)
The Hills Have Eyes

(D)
Miami Vice
Strangers with Candy
Hostel

(D-)
Click

(F)
Date Movie

There's my verdict. What's yours???

- Don't ask about the football pool. I'm still upset. . . (that means I didn't win a single week and I didn't place at the end. . . AAARRRGGGHHHH!!!!!)

- Ok, let's see. . . I have Thursday and Friday of this coming week off (at least at the moment). I'll do the FIRST THIRD MOVIE PREVIEW on one of those days. Don't worry. I've decided to do 15 films and one wild-card and only two have January release dates - - and they're late January at that. Just look for it soon!

- Had some fun with Chelsea's new computer (Christmas gift) and a program that manipulates pictures. Check it out:
































It was fun. . .

- New Year's Eve was pretty fun. That's all you really need to know I guess. . .

- Heather is just about settled in her dorm at Cal Poly Pomona. She has made some friends (something that she really didn't have in the LB) which makes yours truly very happy. I love that she is being forced to be social. This is where she is going to make life-long friends (seeing that her high school girls are kinda loosey goosey and don't respond to Heather's efforts) and that makes me happy. She is also loving her classes (one is an Animal Handling class and her first class was spent entirely on learning how to examine rabbits - this is Heather's heaven!) and I'm so glad for her. I also learned this week that the Ontario Mills Mall (an awesome shopping center) is just 10 miles from Pomona, so we have a date central now! All in all, it's going to be awesome and I know it. I KNOW it!

- Random older movie recommendations:

NARC (A dark, gritty cop drama - not for the faint of heart. Excellent performances and just an all around great film. Also, as a caution: it's an open ending, so don't watch it unless you can handle a lack of closure.)
LOVE ACTUALLY (A really good rom com. Heather loved it and I was not bored. That's a great film if you ask me!)

- And finally for tonight, a video of one of the greatest dunks in the history of the NBA (in my opinion) and the biggest reason that Kevin Johnson was, is, and always will be my favorite basketball player of all-time:



What you need to know about this:

- K.J. is 6'1''. Hakeem is 7'0''
- The Suns were down by almost ten in the waning minutes of this game, the clincher in the series for the Rockets. The game was over. K.J. was not giving up.
- The passion after the dunk. Priceless.
- O yeah, and EAT IT HAKEEM! Eat that elbow!

I hope you all continue to check in with me. I'm trying to do my best at blogging and I don't want to get away from it. I just like my posts to be meaningful and not just short blurbs.

Either way, I'm done for tonight. . .

Have a good week all and I'll see ya when I see ya - - -

Goodnight -


Monday, January 01, 2007

Something New

Happy 2007 everyone!!!

Blogger.com has undergone some really cool changes and so A RAMBLER'S RAMBLING has been updated. Please enjoy the new things (some big, some small) and let me know what you think.

Don't forget to check back often - you never know what might change next!!!

Updates on how New Years Eve went (on a scale of 1 to 10, I would give it a strong 8.5), movies (the FIRST THIRD MOVIE PREVIEW is coming - I swear!), and Heather's move to Pomona (very successful but sad for yours truly) will be coming in greater detail in the next couple days - -

Until then, enjoy the first days of 2007! If they are anything like 2006, they'll be gone before you know it!