All I know is, if Bonnie beats out Rock in next week's finale, I'm never watching Hell's Kitchen again.
vs.
Rock is clearly the better chef in the kitchen. We'll find that out next week when he leads his team against Bonnie's. Or else.
I can honesty say that I had been waiting for the day that a Simpsons movie was made and for the longest time I was in the group of people who did not want it to happen. Why? Because I thought they would go overboard and not do the great legacy of The Simpsons it's due justice.
And then it happened. Fox went ahead and made a movie with the Simpson family and cast of characters America and the world has been watching since 1989. And it was brilliant.
Sure, The Simpsons Movie did some things you would never see on the television show, such as Homer using a hand gesture, Marge cursing, and Bart showing off his...well, not his butt. The animation was definitely different from the show, and why not? When you have a Hollywood studio producing one of the ultimate movies in the franchise, you want to make it look good. The movie uses more of a Futurama style in it's animation, which was fine with me. I love Futurama. The plot wasn't too over the top. You get a good fill of the characters you love, but maybe you missed some of your favorite characters.
For example, where was Sideshow Bob? Are you telling me in the whole timeline of the movie you couldn't put Sideshow Bob, the ultimate Simpsons cameo character and nemesis to Bart, in one stinking scene? Was Kelsey Grammar demanding too much? I doubt it, when you can find a way to get Tom Hanks to have one of the best lines of the movie.
And maybe it was just me, but Arnold Schwarzenegger as President of the United States? Why not stick to Simpsons characters and put Simpsons film star Rainier Wolfcastle in that role?
All in all though we follow the story of Homer ruining the lives of his family as Marge questions their marriage, Lisa detests his morals, and Bart looks for a new father figure in his life...Ned Flanders. But as it happens in every show with similar conflicts, Homer realizes what he must do to help save his relationship with his family, and in this case the entire town of Springfield.
If you happen to be like me and have been watching the show on tv for it's entirety, as well as the many many reruns, and own all of the dvd season releases, then you will likely enjoy the movie on another level. There are some great inside jokes that only the purest of Simpsons fans would understand. For example, I knew the elephant's name. Did you? I particularly got a great kick over the scene where Homer and Bart jump Springfield Gorge. I think I may have been the only one in my surrounding area that loved that part so much. I know, I'm a dork.
If you are a fan of The Simpsons, you probably already saw this movie and enjoyed it. If you have never seen an episode of The Simpsons you probably have never watched tv in your life. Do yourself a favor and check out this movie. If you get a chance find a theater that is showing the digital version of the movie, as the picture and sound will be even crisper and sharper than a traditional roll of film (which is what I saw). Prepare to have a good time.
If you can't see The Simpsons Movie, or you alreday have and you're still looking for some good laughs, then check out the Adam Sandler and Kevin James film, I Now Pronounce you Chuck and Larry. I think Adam Sandler is funny, but I think Kevin James is hilarious. James was the star of one of my favorite, and often overlooked, show The King of Queens. Having grown to love his character of Doug Heffernan, I had to see this film. As in every Sandler film over the past few years you will find Sandler playing the role of the guy who thinks of himself first and everybody else never, until he realizes that his best friend needs help that nobody else can provide. From there Sandler transforms his opinions 180 degrees as you get the feel good ending. And you got it, Sandler's pals make their usual cameo appearances, and so does Gary Valentine, James' brother.
Of course the most marketable aspect of the film is Jessica Biel. Gee, I wonder why...
Well we did it. Stef and I went to the Borders in North Wales, where she had reserved her copy of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows when it was initially announced. I had stopped by earlier in the afternoon to pick up her wristband that would determine when she would actually receive her copy. We got a silver wristband which I thought was pretty good seeing as it was after 3pm in the afternoon. The silver wristbands were the second group of people to get their copies (the happiest people on the night had orange wristbands).
There were a bunch of activities to be going on, including a costume contest, Snape bingo, trivia, and a few other things to keep kids occupied way past their normal bedtime. I still did not know what I was about to step into. When we pulled into the parking lot and saw that there were way more cars than what we usually see, so many in fact that it flowed into the lot by the abandoned Pizza Hutt, that is when I started to realize just how big this event was.
Pure pandemonium. Tons of kids. Lots of costumes. I have to hand it to these Potter-heads, they love their book. Now someday I hope to have some kids of my own, and I hope they enjoy reading as much as Stef does, because I believe it will be valuable to their lives, but part of me hopes they don't get so wrapped up in a series that they want to dress in costumes and go to the store at midnight to get a fresh copy.
Some of my favorite costumes on the night included a couple of real young kids dressed as Harry Potter, one kid dressed as Hedwig (whose mother by the way was dressed in a costume but I think she was dressed more like Link), and one lady was dressed as Dolores Umbridge. But the best costume, to me, was the guy who decided to show up as Darth Vader. I wish I had a picture of that one. Now I haven't read the final book yet, but here is my...
!!!!!!!!!!SPOILER ALERT!!!!!!!!!!
Darth Vader killed Potter's parents, and is the true father of Harry.
Don't say I didn't warn you!
All in all we received Stef's copy a little bit before 1am and we got home not too long afterward, so the night could have gone on much longer. Good thing I got that silver wristband, eh? I can safely say I will never go to a midnight release for book ever again. Enjoy a couple of my snapshots form the night. The rest can be found on my Flickr page.
This is what you saw as soon as you walked through the front door.
Mt. Boxes of Potter.
Well I am fresh back from my cruise honeymoon in the Caribbean Sea and what else is there to do than get caught up in all of the Harry Potter hoopla this week?
We were away when the Harry Potter movie was released so we made sure to catch it the afternoon after we came back. I thought it was good, but I don't think I liked it as much as the last one (you'll have to excuse me as I don't have all of the names of the books and movies straight). From what I've been told the movie did leave a lot of stuff out, but as far as making a movie it seemed to flow well for me, the casual Harry Potter fan. I admit I haven't read all of the books, in fact I actually fell asleep reading the first installment, so I am only watching these movies for a sense of entertainment. Without having read the books I think I have a decent enough grasp of what's going on in the movies just fine. Having said that I definitely recommend either watching the previous movies or reading the preceding books before watching this movie, because when it starts it throws you right into the thick of the conflict between Harry and the name which not be spoken...or however they refer to Voldemort. I'm not even sure if I spelled that correctly! Again, Casual Potter fan.
As for the big event, the midnight release of the final chapters in the Harry Potter legacey, I will be there with Stef for it all. Stef has her copy reserved and we'll be there to pick it up, along with how many other nutty people are in the area, at the Borders in Montgomeryville. Check back here later this weekend to see what I thought, if you are interested.
Or don't, whatever. :^)
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If you would like to see pictures from the cruise, check out my Flickr page for all of the pictures! There are 385 in all!
To the lady at the gym who was using the exercise bike with her headphones plugged into the bike's radio,
Please do not feel the need to sing along out loud to whatever song you are listening too in the future. It is annoying. Your voice was not good. And people were mocking you. It's one thing to be grunting while lifting weights or something, but singing along to songs on your music player or the radio? Nope. Not a good idea.
Thank you for listening,
Kevin
I'd like to announce a new and exciting feature to my blog...well, as exciting as a feature on a blog can be I suppose. It's not exactly like I'm holding you on the edge of your desk chair as the anticipation and eagerness overfills your body with excitement. Right? If you said yes, you need to find yourself a hobby! If not, then read on.
It's called ClustrMaps. You can see mine on the right hand side at the bottom of the links box. Simply put it is another adaptation of the hit counter. This one actually tracks your readers or profile viewers on a map of the world, thus giving you a chance to see where your readers are. This is a neat idea for those of you who want to see what kind of audience you have. Do most of your profile or blog readers come from your local area or are you somehow branching out to unknown people all over the globe? Each view is denoted by a red circle on the map. I believe the dots can get bigger if a certain number of people from one area access your page, but I admit there are still some features I need to brush up on.
The widget is clean and does not pollute your site. There are four different HTML codes offered so you can pick the thumbnail you like best to add to your page. There is also a "plus" version as well as a "pro" version (in development) which give you access to some extra features such as zooming in on a map, customization of a map, and the removal of the small ads. The small text ads do not offend me so I guess I'll stick with the free beta version and give it a whirl.
So, now that I can track where you are (so to speak) why not leave a comment in the comment section and introduce yourself and say where you are reading this from? Or not, the choice is yours ultimately.
Here are the rest of the maps that are offered, using this site to track visitors:
Recommended HTML code
Simple
Advanced - true WC3 XHTML 1.1 validation
Minimalist
Today I found myself logging into four different online services while eating breakfast. Four! It started with logging into my bank account online so I could see where my balance stood after another weekend of wedding preparations so I could find out how much I could spend on lunch today. After finding out I can order a couple things off of the McDonald's dollar menu and drink form the water fountain at work I logged in to my MySpace and Facebook profiles. Being so socially involved in the world I feel the need to be a member of the two most popular social networks because one is simply not enough, even though I am friends with the same people (more or less) on both services. Do I need two separate profiles? After that it was a weekly visit to the Yahoo! Groups forums to check in on the Kappa Kappa Psi - Lambda Delta list serve to see if there were any posts about an outing over the weekend.
This is when I started to think to myself, "Self, exactly how many different online memberships do you have and why can't you have just one place to find them all?" I found it hard to answer myself because I honestly did not even know how many places I had online registrations for. This to me, is just the way of life. As the internet becomes more and more a part of our everyday lives I am sure that many people may find themselves in the same boat as myself, juggling passwords and login names from site to site.
There are software titles out there that will help you keep everything straight, unless you use the same user name and password for every service or forum. I admit I use the same user name as much as possible but I change my passwords dependant on the site I'm visiting. I have no idea how I keep them all straight in my head. It probably is an effect of playing Nintendo so much when I was younger and memorizing the Konami code and passwords and maze paths for so many games.
Here is a list of all of my online profiles for you to view. I'll be sure to add more as they surely come along, or I find the old ones that I've forgotten about. These things add up pretty fast!
MySpace - My first forray into the social networking aspect of the world wide web.
Facebook - Once I realized more of my MySpace friends were using Facebook, I decided to make the switch, so to speak.
Flickr - This is a social networking site and online photo album all in one. I love how you can pinpoint on a map where your pictures were taken.
FanNation - MySpace meets Sports Illustrated.
AskVille - I just wrote about this service in my recent blog post.
ebay - Here is my novice "About me" page on eBay.
Amazon - My profile for Amazon, featuring the link to my wonderful review of Mike Schmidt's Clearing the Bases. I had a wish list on there but recently deleted it. I do plan on bringing it back before the summer is up (so people can start birthday shopping for me!)
YouTube - there was a time when I anticipated actually uploading some videos to YouTube. That hasn't materialized, but I do have a profile page!
That is all I can dig up at the moment because those are the most common ones I use. When it comes to online forums, or message boards, I can rattle off a few that I have visited in my internet browsing history...
Philadelphia Phillies
Philadelphia Eagles
D2football.com - fans of NCAA division two football
DigitPress - Gaming forum for retro game enthusiasts (NES, Genesis, SNES etc.) and collectors
And I am sure there are plenty more out there that escape my internal cache right now.
It doesn't stop there either. Many companies are forming their own online services where you can log in to their site, register your products and view online documentation, receive special offers, and receive online support in addition to other features. My favorite feature that both SanDisk and Black & Decker offer me is a way of viewing the products that I own by these companies. SanDisk allows me to view my "eBox" so I can see what items I have registered with them. When I view my eBox I see that I have registered my Sansa e250 and a 1GB Memory Stick PRO Duo. If I click on either item I can see all of the specs for the item, download the documentation for it, and access a FAQ. In some cases, as is the case for my Sansa player, I can download updated drivers and browse the accessories that are designed specifically for my player. With Black & Decker I can view a similar area, called "My Toolbox". When I go there I can check out my cordless screwdriver in all of its glory. Nintendo has the same feature as well. Every game or system comes with a little piece of paper with a code on it. You use that to register your game with your Nintendo profile so you can keep an online database of the Nintendo products you own. Those codes also allow you to get special downloads for your game, such as wallpaper, movies and cursors for your computer.
So, in a nutshell I think I can be found on an internet territory near you. I'm sure some of you can claim to be much more of an internet roamer so you probably have profiles here and profiles there. Take a minute to look through exactly how many forums you are associated with. Then take a step back and take a deep breath. It really can be overwhelming. Think identity theft can not happen to you? Maybe once you look at all of your outlets on the internet you may think twice about it.
I received an e-mail from the folks at Amazon.com today and they invited me to participate in the beta of their new service, Askville. Naturally I was intrigued so I gave it a once over.
The main site lays out everything for you and tells you exactly what this site is about right away. You ask a question and wait for other users to respond to your question. Sure you could ask questions about the universe or ask the importance of life, but it seems to me that the site is more geared for shopping purposes (as if the fact that it is a service of Amazon did not give that fact away already). You can tell by the varying questions that are listed on the front page you can tell that this site will be eclectic in opinions and experts.
The process is simple. You do need to sign up for an account (your existing Amazon account will suffice and save you time). I signed in using my Amazon account information. Once you are signed in, start typing in your question in the text box and away you go. Once submitting your question you will be taken to a screen where you can add details to your inquiry and even assign it topics. For example, I asked about finding an affordable set of golf clubs. I then added more information to the information box such as I am a beginner, have only been out a handful of times but plan on going out in the future. I also noted that I would prefer not to use an auction site such as ebay, but have not ruled it out. I also added that I would prefer new, but slightly used could work as well. After that you are given the option of assigning topics for your question. This feature can be helpful because then you can break down all of the questions by other users by category. Perhaps you have the same question that is out there. Instead of asking yourself you may find somebody else has already received an answer that can help you out as well. I highly encourage people to look before asking, although I'm sure that will not happen on a large scale. Nothing irritates me more than finding the same question in a forum because people do not look before they speak, thus in Internet etiquette, or "netiquette", world, makes them look foolish. When you are finished, click on "Ask Your Question" and your question is added to the forum. All you have to do now is wait for people to answer your question.
As mentioned this is a beta service. The official service will be called Questville.com, which is slated to debut later this year. Essentially it will be the same service from what I gather except it will offer items that can be redeemed with Questcoins and "other cool things", as the FAQ says. The Questcoins are used as motivation for users to use Askville in a mature matter. You earn these coins in a number of ways. You receive one coin every time you ask or answer a question. Users asking questions also get to grade the responses they receive. A "Great answer" receives ten coins, and the "best answer" gets an extra five coins. However, in a move that will motivate users to leave useful feedback and not just pollute the forums with lackluster responses just to boost coin totals, "weak" and "awful" answers will lose five coins and ten coins respectively. You also get five points just for logging in (limit of once per day). There are a couple other little ways to receive points as well.
In addition to Questcoins, there are experience points. Experience points are used to grade the individual users and their knowledge in varying topics. This is another reason why I suggest adding topics to your questions, and you will see why in a minute. Let's use an example for this. Going back to my golf club question, I assigned the topics of "sports", "golf" and "golf clubs". Let us assume that "GolferJay" (this is a made up name just so you know) chimes in with a terrific answer that helps me out. I will then vote "GolferJay" as my "best answer" and he will receive 15 experience points in the topics of "sports", "golf" and "golf clubs". This will help other users out because now somebody else asking a question in any of those topics will recognize that "GolferJay" has some knowledge on those topics. The experience points work the same way as the questcoins in the negative way as well, which helps pick out the Internet hitchhikers leaving their trash along the super highways. Also, once a user reaches a certain number of experience points, they will be rewarded with questcoins, depending on their level.
The Questcoins will not be able to be redeemed anywhere but Questville.com when it debuts, so Askville is encouraging users to get going and Amazon clearly hopes they can build a following in the beta stage and have them transfer right over to the Questville service. There are more areas to still explore on Askville right now for me, but I plan on giving it a run and see how it works out. I love the idea of the user-to-user format. It is almost as if Askville is mixing the MySpace philosophy with ebay, or I suppose Amazon's service would be more appropriate. In any event, if you try out the site, let me know what you think of it in the comments section.
I went to Eckerd the other day and saw this cool looking car in the parking lot. I took these two shots with my cell phone and uploaded them to my Flickr site, but decided to post them here as well. I thought it was cool looking. It sort of made me wish I had picked up a Sprite instead of a Coke though...
Continuing on my "Stupid People" theme this morning...
A movie was recently being shot in West Chester and I suppose some parts were filmed on the campus of West Chester University. Here is a pet peeve of mine that I would like to see stopped immediately on the national scale because I have seen it on more than one occasion.
It is not West Chester State. It is West Chester University. It is not Shippensburg State. It is Shippensburg University. It is not Bloomsburg State. It is Bloomsburg University.
I do not believe any of the schools in the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education are referred to as State anymore, but they are all University. If you are making your schedules for sports or doing stories for the news, please make note that update. In the past week I have seen WCU and Ship referred to as State in a sports schedule, and just this morning I heard WCU referred to as West Chester State.
Thanks for listening!
Ok, I should preface this by saying I want you to understand that I was already a little irritable when these customers approached me. Even if I was in a great mood though, these customers may very well have made me irate anyway!
The first was a pair of college aged sorority girls on a shopping mission for their mom. They have a page full of a shopping list and bring their cart up to me and say "We need all these things, can you help us out?" Next thing I know I find myself leading these girls through the entire store hand picking out all of their selections. Now, maybe it's just me, but I would like to think that a couple of college aged girls would be able to browse the aisles for what they need. After all, every aisle is marked with the basic contents that reside on their shelves. And paper? Well if you look at the wall, there is a 15ft x 30 ft sign that says "Paper".
Let this be a lesson for all of you. I am not here to do your shopping for you. I am here to assist you and answer any questions for you. Do your own darn shopping people!
I am sick and tired of people asking me "Do you work here?" Do people really think I'm wearing this get up because I think I look cool? Or because I'm comfortable? Please! Yesterday this lady was looking right at my name tag and then she asked me that question. Do people usually walk around a store carrying a box, cutting it open with a knife, and placing the stock on the shelf? If they do they must be really nice people. I wish those people would make it to my store! But in any event people, please use common sense. If you see a group of people throughout the store wearing identical clothing, an they have name tags on, or they are putting stock on a shelf, then they probably work there. You have no idea how discouraging that can be for an employee. Maybe I should go to your office, walk up to your desk and ask you the same thing.
I realize that the office retail world is different than the office world, and I'm ok with that. But don't you dare start thinking that just because you work at an office, or have a secretary, or have a platinum card with a $100,000 limit, or have a fancy car, that makes you better than me. While I may be ranting and raving right now, truth is I treat all of my customers with respect and I truly enjoy working with people, helping them find what they need, or attempting to work out alternative solutions. If I am out of an item, believe me, I do feel bad but I will do everything in my power to find what you need, whether it is form another store or online. So please, do not complain to me that we had the item the other day, last year, or years ago. Please don't tell me that we aren't doing our job because we are out of an item. Please, do not ask me "Are you sure?" or "Do you have any in the back?" Those questions leave the retail worker feeling a little discouraged and, for some (not me), they will start to feel less inclined to help you out because you are belittling their pride. These people work in the store and know where everything should be. I can't speak for all of my co-workers, but if I tell you we don't have any more of something, I urge you to take my word for it. After all, I have performed the duties of an inventory analyst and in the position I learn where everything would be and know how the inventory system works better than anybody in the store. I'm not bragging, it's just the truth. No means no.
And finally, for today, do not tip me. I know that sounds weird because you would think I love earning extra money on the side. Truth is, I am not allowed to accept tips. If you try to give me a tip I will tell you that it is ok and I appreciate it but will not accept it. I am getting paid to help you put furniture in your car. Some associates will take them, but I find it unethical. I'm not driving you anywhere and I'm not serving you food and drinks. If I am providing you exceptional service, then please send a comment to my bosses or the regional office. Believe me, that helps me out a lot more than $2. So if you are the kind of person who feels obligated to tip the people helping you load your car, instead of reaching for your wallet to give them a couple bucks, make a mental note of their name (or names), go home, and drop the corporate office a line thanking them for the job well done and mention their name and location. This feedback gets back to the store, and a lot of times leads to awards such as employee of the month, which usually ends up as a $20 gift card. Now, your tip of a couple bucks could have transformed to a $20 reward.
I don't know how many of you readers are fans of The Sopranos, HBO's top rated program that came to a shocking ending...sort of. I totally understand how you can be consumed by a television show and how you can look forward to that one hour of television programming an entire week. I have done much the same with 24 and (lately) Lost. I have only seen one episode of Sopranos (the pilot) and I must admit, if I had HBO I would probably watch it more often.
What Sopranos did to you this week with it's black out ending was, I believe, a disgrace. A show that consumes you so much owes you the legitimate ending to wrap it all up. If it is going to leave things out in the open, at least let it be known. Instead you got the cheap, sudden black out and silence approach, causing many to think their cable went out at the worst possible time. I would be mad too. In the eight years it was on, I have felt like I have watched the show because I hear so many people talk about it on the radio or on TV or out on the street. I don't know everything but I think I got the broad plot line down enough to understand the frustrations with the ending. You probably wanted to see Tony get whacked, or see how Tony and his family find their way into refuge. In any event, I feel your pain.
But there are many people still obsessing over the ending and looking for the hidden meanings to determine what "really" happened. I have heard numerous beliefs and philosophies as to what happened. Tony was whacked because he said earlier in the season that when you're shot you don't hear anything and all you get is plain black, or something like that. The audience was whacked. There was a parallel universe with two Tonys and the one wearing this shirt was killed and the one wearing this shirt was not. That is probably my favorite.
I've only seen the ending once, on the news, and I think I can tell you what happened. I think that Tony was sitting there, looked up, and the show ended abruptly.
When I was younger my grand pop used to take me to the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia numerous times. I always loved going and today, when I returned for the first time in at least a decade plus, I was pleased to see some of the same attractions still in tact. The airplane room, the train room and electricity room all had many of the things I fondly remembered. The IMAX theater is still as curved as ever and you can swear you're hanging above some of the people in the introduction video of Philadelphia. But today I came to see the King Tut exhibit.
Sadly, I can not provide any photos of the exhibit as photography was prohibited, but here are a couple other snapshots from the day trip down to Philadelphia, featuring my first ever train ride! I know, I'm sheltered I suppose.
It all started out when we ran into the Fantastic Four and the Silver Surfer at the Fortuna station waiting for the train.
You know all of the international flags on the Ben Franklin Parkway? Somehow Ryan Howard and Brett Myers found their way into the mix.
The PBS logo, looking up at the giant King Tut banners (below)
Part of the Sports Science and Health exhibit. I was at that game by the way.
Some random guy gave me his ticket for this ride for free. It's pretty scary up there!
On the way back to the train station to go home Stef and I had to do the tourist thing and get our picture taken here.
So I saw Shrek 3 last weekend, and like Spider Man 3, I was left unfulfilled. Perhaps I should have had the risotto?
I believe that the first Shrek was the best of the three, although I debate that with myself sometimes and go with the second. The third one was kind of dull and missing some of the humor that made the first couple movies so good. I don't know, I guess we can only hear the "Nobody likes an ogre" story so many times. We get it, it's what is on the inside that really counts!
The third installment of the Pirates of the Caribean saga comes out tonight so I'll be sure to check it out. I have high hopes that this movie will lift my spirits when it comes to summer movies. We're off to a somewhat disappointing start.
Maybe it was just me, but I thought the season finales of 24 and Lost both kicked butt! This season of 24 was somewhat dull so I was pleased with the traditional, upbeat, heart pumping, exhilarating season finale that 24 is usually good for. I don't know what will happen next in the life of Jack Bauer though. As for Lost, I loved the twist at the end showing that we were actually looking forward in the life of Jack Sheperd, instead of backwards. Creepy!
I'm looking forward to tv watching in the upcoming months now so I can catch up on some shows I've been missing out on (I'm looking your way Heroes and Alias.)
So while my car getting rear ended and it taking a while to get an estimate for the repair job, being massively busy at work trying to do the job of two people while training a third, and leading the youngens in my department all combined to take their toll on me stress wise and energy wise, I did find out that I'm getting a slight raise today.
This just goes to show you that hard work and dedication can pay off for you sometimes and it was a great way to end my week after the previous mishaps.
I'll start by saying that I'm fine and nobody was injured. And for you Preston and Steve fans might say, "All I did was get out of the shower!" I don't listen to Preston and Steve but I hear or read this quote often enough.
So I'm traveling on the Pennsylvania Turnpike this morning and I get stuck in stop and go traffic right before my exit at King of Prussia. I came to a stop, as did the car behind me. But the lady behind him didn't. Oops! She slammed into the guy behind me and he was pushed into the back of my car, which I had just sent through the car wash a day before so it looked mighty fine, except for my missing front hub cap. In the split second that it all happened I heard the crash behind me and yelled out a word I don't normally say because I knew I was going to be a victim here. Luckily I was at the front of the chain and the car in front of me, which was slightly nudged if anything had no damage, as the front of my car was also lucky.
The back of the car though, that's a different story. Sure, things could have been a lot worse so I guess after the shock of what had happened set in and I had a chance to talk to a couple loved ones and some coworkers, I began to feel better about things. I took these shots with my cell phone so you can see what I'm talking about!
I like the bottom one because you can see me in all my Staples glory. The one above it probably shows the worst part of the damage. Thank goodness for insurance companies!
*Before reading this rambling, be sure that either A) you have seen Spider man 3, or B) you have no interest in seeing the movie, because I will spoil part of the plot line for you. So, consider yourself forewarned.
Like many of you I'm sure, I saw the third installment of the Spider man movies. I have been looking forward to this film quenching my thirst for the Spider man story to reach a new level, yet I left still wanting to order a Vault to fill that need.
I felt that Spider man 3 fell into the same trap that Batman and Robin did. That problem was having too many characters and thus too many story lines. What I saw was essentially two Spidey movies crammed into the time they had for one. When I was in my comic book reading days my friend Jason introduced me to Venom, one of the baddest villains around. I quickly grew found of Venom and loved his storyline, even when it appeared to fight for good rather than evil. Venom was a twisted character and one tough dude and he hated Spidey. This movie did not give Venom his justice. And rather than leave themselves open for a, dare I say it, a fourth Spider man film focusing more on Venom, they killed him off. To me, a lot of potential died with him.
The whole Sandman character, to me, seemed kind of forced on us. It seemed that the character was thrown in there to either fill up space, or try to force another threat on us. To me, I feel there could have been stronger characters to put in the movie instead of Sandman, some more powerful Spidey foes. I would have liked to see Peter Parker's professor, Dr. Curt Conners, be written in to take his role as the Lizard. If a fourth movie is done, maybe that's the way they will go.
As I mentioned, Venom and Sandman were the two main villains, but the movie starts off by Harry settling his score with Peter, and then Peter knocks him out and that results in Harry losing his memory. How convenient. It's not like Spidey could have three enemies at the same time, right? And as if that weren't enough they introduce the black Spider man, sort of the evil alter ego of the friendly neighborhood Spider man. Again, the story line is jumbled enough as it is. Then of course there is the strained relationship between Peter and Mary Jane Watson.
Two movies could have easily been made out of this film. One movie could have dealt with Harry and Sand-Man, and then the other could have centered on the love story and Venom (as wella s the black Spider man).
Here is my hope for the fourth movie (if there ever is one). Carnage needs to be brought in. He is the toughest and most vicious of all the Spider man villains I think. And since Venom was already written off, Carnage would be the next best thing. I would have had Spider man and Venom fighting each other first but then have them team up to take out Carnage, but then again, I'm not a Hollywood writer am I? I wish another hero could be brought in, like Ghost Rider or Dare Devil, but the fact that those characters have been in their own movies surely will prohibit form that happening.
There were some excellent previews before the movie though, including Fantastic 4: Rise of the Silver Surfer and the latest Harry Potter film, both due out this summer. And the popcorn wasn't too bad either. If you like the Spider man movies, you should still see this one, however I remain thinking that the original is still the best.
The honor of Ramblings Phillie of the Week goes to none other than center fielder Aaron Rowand. Aside form continuing his hit streak this past week, Rowand has come through in the clutch more often than not. A couple of key home runs, vaulting him further past Ryan Howard but not quite at Jimmy Rollins (how weird is that?), and showing patience at the plate, Rowand's bat has been the key ingredient in the recent success of the Phillies.
But as we all know his glove is his biggest asset. Rowand made some incredible plays in the outfield against Cincinnati and Washington that helped out the Phillies pitchers from facing any major problems on the mound.
I would like to see this continued play out of Rowand, so I am optimistic that this is the player they traded for in the Jim Thome deal. Rowand is in what they call a contract year, but he does seem to be playing more consistent of late. Here's hoping he remains injury free as well.
Congratulations Aaron Rowand! You are this week's Ramblings Phillie of the Week!
And now a recap/rant on Day One of the NFL Draft...
If you read my previous post then you are probably correct in assuming how delighted I was to see Brady Quinn drop so far. I was watching it wondering when the kid would get picked. When the first five picks went by I started looking at everyone coming up and pointed out that none of the teams were in a position to pick a quarterback. I started thinking that if he fell to the Kansas City Chiefs that they may take him, unless somebody trades up to get him. Sure enough, the Cleveland Browns did just that. I could have done without all of the ESPN "happy ending" story lines, showing a four year old Quinn wearing his Browns jersey and helmet. Reminded me of all of those young Manning brothers home videos.
As for the Eagles, I wasn't surprised that they traded down once their top two safety choices were already gone, however I was surprised they traded with the Cowboys. Once I saw what picks we got in return I was ok with the deal though. I wasn't too scared of the Cowboys drafting a defensive end out of Purdue, but I was stupefied when the Eagles drafted...WHAT?...a quarterback with their first pick?
The whole off season we scrutinized the dealings with Jeff Garcia and were emphatically told by the Eagles organization that they were 100% satisfied with what they have at quarterback, with the franchise QB in Donovan McNabb and a solid backup in AJ Feely. In the trade that brought in linebacker Takeo Spikes form Buffalo, quarterback Kelly Holcomb came with the package. Surely this meant that we were set at the quarterback position, no? The whole pick seemed like a waste of a pick to me. I would have picked up a linebacker or pass rusher with the pick, instead of wasting the pick. The Eagles are not at the point where they should start thinking about McNabb's replacement for years to come if you ask me. If it were not for their three other picks I would be criticizing them even more. Truth is I liked their three remaining picks from yesterday. They picked up a linebacker, a defensive end, and a solid running back.
Needless to say I am very pleased with the selection of running back Tony Hunt, out of Penn State. I don't say this because of my allegiance to the blue and white, but Hunt is a strong back who sees a hole and busts through it. He won't dance around trying to make pretty plays. HE also catches the ball well, so I can see Hunt jumping ahead of the likes of Reno Mahe and Ryan Moats before training camp even opens.
As for the other Nittany Lions, Levi Brown going fifth was widely scrutinized by ESPN, but the Arizona Cardinals need someone to protect their franchise quarterback Matt Leinart, and they couldn't run the ball to save their lives last season. Who else would they have taken? Brown is a physical lineman and he can move a pile. And Paul Posluszny going to the Buffalo Bills is alright. The Bills traded Spikes to the Eagles so they were clearly ready for a new linebacker. All Posluszny does is tackle guys. Defensive tackle Jay Alford going to the Giants was not a bad selection either. The Giants need help on defense, although I thought they'd take a linebacker before a lineman (I thought Posluszny would go to the Giants or Jets actually).
The second day is today (rounds four through seven), so if you're watching, watch the ESPN gurus try and pick out the next Tom Brady. It's the only thing they have going for them today. I'll be watching the Phillies conclude their series with the Marlins today instead.
Those Philadelphia Phillies had a wild win last night. Talk about a whirlwind of emotions in the late innings. They were frustrating heading into the eighth inning, not scoring with men on base, and trailing 4-3. thanks to Jimmy Rollins' National League leading ninth home run and a blast from Chase Utley, the Phillies took a 5-4 lead into the final inning.
Then comes in Tom "Flash" Gordon who quickly gives up a pair of hits, allowing the Marlins to tie it right back up at five.
This was Gordon's third blown save of the season. An act like that should get the Brett Myers to closer role talk stewing a little faster. Now, I don't want to see Myers do a John Smoltz, because I want Myers to be in my starting rotation. The Phillies are in a tough situation because of the lack of action in the off-season to bolster the bullpen. But I digress, as I usually do.
The Phillies beat the Marlins and now must face Dontrelle Willis tonight, throwing out Adam Eaton in opposition. Look for a tough loss today, but a series victory with a win on Sunday afternoon.
Hey, did you hear about the NFL Draft? It's today. There are a lot of rumors flying around what the Oakland Raiders will do with the first pick (draft quarterback JaMarcus Russel from LSU, draft wide receiver Calvin Johnson from Georgia Tech, or trade the pick to someone else) so the drama should be interesting for the first few picks of the draft.
I've seen a pair of interviews with Notre Dame quarterback Brady Quinn and I laugh at what he says most of the time. When Quinn gets questioned on how he responds to his critics he always points out the successes he's had at Notre Dame. He is quick to point out all of the undefeated teams they faced last year (when they played them). Here they are...
Georgia Tech was 0-0.
Penn State was 1-0.
Michigan was 2-0.
Michigan State was 3-0.
Purdue was 4-0.
Ok, Quinn, those teams were all undefeated when you played them. And I was giving you Georgia Tech as a freebie. How about when he responds to his criticism of playing in the big games. When he says that at Notre Dame every game is a big game, I scoff. He is defiant in pointing out that Michigan and USC aren't the only big games they play. They sure aren't Brady. Quick blitz recap!
2007 Sugar Bowl: LSU 41, Notre Dame 14
2006 Fiesta Bowl: Ohio State 34, Notre Dame 20
2006: Michigan State 44, Notre Dame 41 (Remember when Quinn pointed out MSU earlier?)
2005: BYU 20, Notre Dame 17
2005: Purdue 41, Notre Dame 16 (He pointed out Purdue earlier as well)
2005: Boston College 24, Notre Dame 23
2005: Pittsburgh 41, Notre Dame 38
2005 Insight Bowl: Oregon State 38, Notre Dame 21
Does it seem like I'm bashing Brady Quinn a little too much? It is more of a bash on the high exposure to Notre Dame football. Just because a football player comes from South Bend, Indiana does not make them the player that everybody wants to watch. Quinn may become a solid quarterback for a long time and have some success in the game (despite his arm strength), but the folks on ESPN seem to have a problem differentiating between themselves if they want Quinn to be a future Tom Brady (because, if you haven't heard, Quinn's coach also coached Brady at one point in time) or if they want to make Quinn the walking target for over hyped quarterbacks everywhere. Too me it is funny watching a college football season on ESPN and having them hype the guy for Heisman candidacy, and now entering the NFL draft they make big stories on how his stock has dropped and questioning how far he'll drop.
As for the Eagles, I hope more than anything that Paul Posluszny drops that far. Not that it matters, because I'm sure the Eagles won't draft him, but I love to have a shot at a solid linebacker who doesn't do anything but tackle players. Look for the Eagles to draft a secondary position, while Pos gets picked up by a New York team.
Hey, are Matt Schaub jerseys on sale yet? I have to get one.
Ever have one of those days where you sort of wish you had just stayed in bed and called out sick? Of course you have. Well today was one of those days for me...
Now, I've had worse days in my life mind you, but today I just feel like venting a little bit. Perhaps you'll read this and think "He's just over reacting," and if you do, that is fine with me. However, I feel that I do a darn good job of staying positive in just about all situations at work and feel that if I keep my cool, everything will run smoother. Today it was kind of hard to do so.
It was a weird day at the office supply store in which I work (they're not paying me off the clock so I'm not mentioning their name - no free advertising in this blog!). Today is Tuesday so it was a day for a truck delivery. Never mind the fact that I skipped my lunch in anticipation of the truck coming during my normal lunch break. The truck came about an hour and a half late. Normally what we do is unload the merchandise from the truck and into our back room, and then if the truck is taking our returns to go to the warehouse, we'll load them up afterward. Well today we had an issue. Our store was supposed to send back two floor scrubbing machines (we were sent two new ones and told to send the two older ones back). Nobody told the truck driver and he refused to take them for fear he'd get in trouble for transporting stuff he wasn't supposed to be taking. I tried telling him that we received authorization and he fought me saying he couldn't do it. Finally he threw out the "Do you want to call my supervisor and see what he says?" line. Accepting his challenge I said "You bet!"
What a mistake that turned out to be.
The supervisor at the warehouse said he hadn't seen any paperwork for it, at which point I told him I could get our copies and fax it to him if he wanted. Right here let me teach you all a lesson; if you're going to rely on having paperwork to back you up, you better be sure there is paperwork. I was under the impression and was told that one of my managers had organized the authorization through our corporate office. Of course, said manager is on vacation, and said manager is known for not filing papers properly. Thus, I could find no paperwork and was looking like a jerk and a fool all at once to this truck driver and his supervisor. Luckily for me, the supervisor was willing to help me out and set up a new authorization.
Then there was "Little Ms.. Daisy" who called to tell me about a problem she was having with a safe, which she purchased at my store...in 1999 (remember that key fact right there). She told me the whole story about when she bought the safe. When she purchased her safe she was told that if anything should ever go wrong with it, if she had her receipt that we (the store) would take care of it as our guarantee. A little time passed and she started having trouble closing the safe. Ok, no big deal, that can be taken care of. But she told me that someone from my store went to her house and fixed it for her as a way of backing up that earlier guarantee. Now, she doesn't remember who she talked to or who did that for her, but today she started having the same problem, and she was ready for somebody to come out and fix it for her.
"Mamn, I'm sorry for the inconvenience, but I'm not authorized to send any of my associates out to someones place to fix a safe."
"But they did it before. The guy said if I had the receipt that they guaranteed you could fix it."
This loop went on for about five minutes. It went so far she said that her lawyer said that if somebody here guaranteed such a promise, then she could make a case out of it. I have no clue who she talked too, nor does she, but I know my store's philosophies and policies a lot better than most people I guarantee that. We never have put ourselves in a position to go out to customers' homes and fix things for them. Never. Whoever did that before, if it is even true, was violating policies and procedures.
I gave Ms. Daisy the customer support number for the manufacturer. Maybe she could blab their ears off for a while. But she called back twenty minutes later to say she had been on hold with them the whole time. I'm thinking to myself at that point, "so you got off of hold, to tell me that?" Mind you, she started calling the store asking for me directly now. She started to throw the lawyer card, threatening to take me to court over this "guarantee", given by someone who probably isn't even with the company anymore for all I know. She started giving me her address so I could stop by and take a look at it. The first call I was ok with, I've had this kind of issue before. But now she's starting to bother me. While she has me on the phone this second time a line starts to form at the registers, I'm being called up for a manager override, and I simply can't get off the phone. I'm now in the middle of the store trying to jump and wave my arms to grab the attention of someone else to go help out at the register but to no avail because I can't make eye contact with anyone until it gets really backed up up front. Finally I get the lady to try calling the manufacturer once more. Relieved, I sprint up to the front to find that someone has gotten up there to help out with an issue at the register, but now find that my customer service associate and the customer are being snippy with each other. The customer was agitated because of waiting so long and the associate was trying to apologize but getting frustrated with the bickering form the customer.
At this point I'm getting relieved that things are slowing down.
In comes a private investigator. A what? That's right. This guy approaches me and shows me his PI badge credentials and starts asking me about Joe Schmo who worked here from 2002-2003. At this point I'm wondering if this former employee was giving out guarantees about safes. He also asks to see our employee files and wants to know what I know about this guy. I flat out told the guy I'm not going to answer any of his questions or let him see anything because he has to go through human resources for anything that he wants. PI man seemed irritated and starts asking me where the human resources office is and the corporate office. I gave him that information and he jotted down my name and he went out the door. Thankfully that was the end of that.
RING! RING! "Thank you for calling 'said office supply retailer', this is Kevin speaking, how may I help you?"
"Yes, Kevin? I was just on the phone with you about a safe and I just wanted to tell you the people you gave me the number for were able to help me. The safe closes now! Thank you very much!"
Yeah, I'm serious. This lady called me to tell me it works now. Thanks, because I wasn't going to be able to sleep knowing your safe from 1999 wasn't closing. What a relief! And it would have been ok, if she didn't call me as I'm about to head home for the day. Oh yes ladies and gentlemen, that would be her fourth call of the day. I might as well give her my home and cell phone number at this point so she can reach me 24/7.
This time she is inquiring about a new safe and asks me for a price range and the space that each of those have. This is simple enough, I do this sort of thing just about everyday. So I grab a couple price tags and get back on the phone and tell her the prices and how much space is in each one.
"Is that with or without sales tax?"
"Without mamn."
"Oh, how much is it with sales tax."
"Oh, I'm not sure, I'd have to calculate that."
"Ok, I'll wait."
Oh, wait she did. It's simple math, although I admit I still had to write it down. Instead, I walked all the way up to the front of the store, told my manager what was going on and how this lady just won't leave me along, and then I grabbed a calculator and added it up for her. Then I walked into the office and took a sip of my drink. I wasn't in much of a hurry to be honest with you.
Then I got back on the phone and gave her the prices...with sales tax.
"Is that $230 one bigger than my safe that I have?"
"I couldn't tell you mamn. The safe you described to me is one we don't sell anymore so I'm not sure how big yours is."
"Well, is there anyway you could check it out for me?"
At this point we were right back to square one where she wanted me to come to her house and look at her safe.
I eventually got to a safe point where I could safely exit the building without fielding another call form her. It wouldn't surprise me the least if she's called the store again by now or will call at some point this evening. I am thankful for one thing though, and that is my patience. I can tell you that few people in my store could handle what I had to go through with this lady. But I just hope that if she decides to come in and look at our safes, that it's when I'm not there!
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