Popcorn

I watched "Looper" a few nights ago. To this moment, I'm torn between the fact that the movie was really kind of fun to watch or whether it really just dropped the ball on making any effort at having a coherent storyline. For those who haven't seen it, I won't give any spoilers, except to say that if you are going to have a movie about time travel, maybe you should approach the concepts little more intellectually than having one of your stars yell "I'm not going to talk about time travel" because then we have to start drawing diagrams....... Copout. Also, if I'm ever in a future where a Mazda Miata is a cool retro car, let me state here and now, for the record, you can kill me then. No self-respecting professional killer would ever, here and now, drive an Austin Sprite (bugeye) so why try and force the same type of thing in a script?

So now I'm torn. What do I think about this movie? I also recently saw the newer "Total Recall" and loved it. I didn't expect much more than a movie where Colin Farrell kicks ass and two hot chicks fight, so I was pleasantly surprised when I not only got that, but a decently entertaining movie. With Looper, I think I was led to believe that there would be more than what was given to me. And the ending. (No spoilers) Oh, sweet Porky Pig's sweaty tail, that ending just made me wonder if I even should have started the movie. So, in the end, I'm going to say I'm not a fan. In fact, I'm revoking my man card for the next 12 minutes and saying that I enjoyed the new "Les Mis" more than "Looper". And on that bombshell, we're done.

Boys and their toys

I was lucky enough to be given a gift card to a major sporting goods retailer (okay, it was Scheels and I can spend hours there because it has Ferris wheel and animatronic presidents and guns and shoes and golf stuff and...) and even luckier to be able to go with my BILs and FIL to blow the whole card on stuff I don't need but desperately crave. Like Brawndo. However, I spent most of 90 minutes just walking around the store, looking at things that I though I wanted and then discovered, after picking them up, that I really didn't care at all about them. Then, as we were talking about where to go for dinner, from the corner of my eye, I saw it. The entire display case looked like a Zombie Apocalypse preparedness kit, and right in the bottom left corner there it was. About 3-4 years ago I had somehow been mugged and had stolen/misplaced/lit on fire my Leatherman multi-tool that I'd had for the better part of a decade. And here, sitting in front of me, for about 40% off, was a brand new sexy Leatherman that appeared to have my name on it. It was like Christmas all over again. Except it really was Christmas, so that would be redundant. Either way, I was all over that like a fat kid on pancakes. I probably pulled that knife out of my pocket in the movie theater a good 20 times just to open it and play with it. Even better, in the two weeks I've had it, I keep looking for opportunities to use it. For example, I just discovered I can pluck offending nose hairs with the needle-nosed pliers on my Leatherman. See?! It just keeps getting better! Multi-tool and personal grooming device all in one!
Now, I'm sure that I look like "that guy" because I have my Leatherman in my pocket (and the pinup tattoo on my forearm probably doesn't help) but I'll admit that knowing I can change the thermostat on your car in 12 minutes with just what I have in my pocket certainly makes me think I'm probably less likely than you to be eaten by a wild boar. Just food for thought.

Shoes and ships and sailing wax

I'm not great at keeping this blog thing going, so lets focus on the positives. First, I wrote something. Second, I have better facial hair than Frankie Muniz. Third, chances are I'll try to make this post halfway decent. On that note, I've been watching a lot of Top Gear lately. Not the Made-in-USA crap that we have on the History Channel, but the honestly beautiful British motoring show. If anyone in reach hasn't seen it, I highly recommend it, and suggest that you start watching immediately. The banter between the three hosts rises to a sublime level and the fact that they are discussing cars makes this beautiful bit of television even more engrossing.

Christmas was epic. With three kids, you get lost in trying to find them something that will make them happy, and tend to set to the side the fact that you really want a matching set of pearl-handled revolvers. So even when some fictitious white-bearded creep forgets them, you don't really care.

On that note, I'm done. Keep it light for this time back, we'll see where we go from here.