Wednesday, November 30, 2005

Ticket Price for the USC / UCLA game

What to know what USC (rated #1) and UCLA (rated #11) tickets are going for. In California it is legal to resell, just not AT the game. So ebay and marketplace.com have the tickets for sale.

Now, it is quite a rivalery. I mean, two good teams in the same city (where there is no pro team). And we have been rivals for 50 years.

Price PER TICKET on the 45 yard line, 22 rows up from the field.

$2950.00

Really.

And One Last goodbye to Mascot of the Month


And one last quote from Tina Fey - Mascot of November.....

(from SNL)

FEY -- "All hell broke loose in the House of Representatives last night when Ohio Republican Jean Schmidt was violently booed by her colleagues for implying that Congressman John Murtha was a coward for wanting to pull our troops out of Iraq. (AFTER PLAYING FOOTAGE OF THE INCIDENT) Wow, I haven't heard that much booing since I quit stripping."

Brokeback Mountain Premiere


Well, we went to the Brokeback Mountain premiere last night. Let me start with the movie. It is so not a Gay Cowboy Movie. What it is, is a story of two people in love - who can't be. Who won't let themselves be (and being 1963 probably couldn't let themselves be).

It is also the story of these two men, and how there lives are affected after "the night / summer". They both get married and have kids. It is hard to describe (which is why the gay cowboy movie title has stuck).

It is directed by Ang Lee, who did Sense and sensibility, The Ice Storm The Hulk and won an Oscar for crouching Tiger / Hidden Dragon.

It is a really good movie. Jake and Heath were great (Jake was there in person and is cute!). They are both straight, and they play the parts perfectly - which is two straight guys who don't get what is going on emotionally with them. The wives are spot on - in really difficult roles.

I hate movies where the bad guys are REALLY BAD and the good guys are PERFECT. This is a movie about people, love, loss and emotions. All the characters (okay - except maybe 1 father in law) are real people.

It is slow - as all Ang Lee pictures are. It is certainly not porn - but it is achingly romantic. Not just the guys, but the women too.

At the premiere, you never know who you are going to be impressed by. We attempt to be bla-say about actors. No problem. But Oliver Stone was there as was Jamie Lee Curtis, Christina Slater, a ton of big directors. No biggie for me. Ed was impressed with Ang Lee (Ed spoke with him).

Me, I was tongue tied cuz Larry McMurty was there. He co-wrote the story. He is also an amazing writer! He wrote (to name some) Last Picture Show, Lonesome Dove, Streets of Larado, Leaving Cheyenne, Terms of Endearment, Texasville - and a ton of other great books. He impressed me.

And, he captures the "West" in this movie in a way you don't see much. The mountains, the beauty, the freedom, the loneliness, the emtpiness, the spring, the bleak. So much of the "West" (not LA, but the mountains and in space in between the mountains) is hard to describe because it is a feeling. The movie catches that.

It's not the best thing I have ever seen. If you go you will want it to go faster. But I really like it.

Tuesday, November 29, 2005

One Last Trevor in November


One last shot.

Lying Cry-Baby



Blubber'er. Liar!

Randy "Duke" Cunningham (no relation to Richie) tearfully quit the House of Representatives yesterday. The Republican from San Diego cried and (per MSNBC) "pleaded guilty to graft and tearfully resigned Monday, admitting he took $2.4 million in bribes from defense contractors to steer business their way."

Said the boo-de-hoo-dee liar, who coped a plea for a lesser sentance, "I'm almost 65 years old and I enter the twilight of my life. I intend to use the remaining time that God grants me to make amends, and I will." (CNN).

I should be nicer, I suppose, to the blubbery, lying theif who took 2.4 Million dollars to steering contracts to a Denfense contract (MZM Inc.). I mean, taking advantage of the office to which you have been elected isn't really new. Lying isn't new. Betraying the American Public and the Trust of the people of his district - why that is almost quaint.

No, what sets my team on edge is this quote (from July of this year - from CNN); Cunningham said while he continues to believe he received a "reasonable price" for the Del Mar home, he and his wife will sell their current home, where they had planned to retire, and donate part of the proceeds to charity to demonstrate to their friends and supporters "that I did nothing wrong."

Either quit whenyou are caught - or continue to lie to the bitter end. Now you just look like a low level lying crook that steared BILLIONS our our tax dollars to give to a low rent defense contractor without thinking about the quality (and possible harm to our military) of the output. The 2.4 Million dollars (that you have ADMITTED TO - who knows how much else there is) cost Amreicans Billions in tax dollars - and unknown amounts in military waster.

FYI - the contractor hasn't lost a contract one for this.

Monday, November 28, 2005

Ho ho Penguin



Here is the Christmas Penguin, all blown'ed up.

I am back

I was sick the first part of last week, and then back East (in the cold and snow - for a warm Thanksgiving) - but I am back now.

whee!

More later

Wednesday, November 16, 2005

Ed's Nigthmare


Just so you know getting Stuck at the top of the Sratosphere is like ed's worst nightmare.
http://www.reviewjournal.com/lvrj_home/2005/Nov-16-Wed-2005/news/4336466.html

And the worst thing is, this isn't the first time. Apparently once it stopped due to high winds. It is suppose to stop and return, but it just stopped. So with 60 MPH wind gusts, the people were left hanging over the edge.

Last night some poor Japanese tourists were stuck because a driver hit a power junction somewhere far below. They were stuck in cold weather in the dark for a while.

Other Japanese toursits, hearing the ride would be shut down, were really mad and wanted to ride anyway.

At least put a little effort into it

Okay, I will admit that I do not understand that whole "transgender" thing. I know that some people feel trapped in the wrong gender. I know that we are suppose to be fine with it - and to be honest, I am. I don't really care one way or the other.

But, and I cannot stress this enough, slapping on a wig and a dress is not enough. I mean if you are really a woman trapped in a man's body - you would put a little work into to. Women work to look nice. I mean, that is part of the thing. If you don't put a little effort into the process, you are just a lazy man in a dress.

I bring this up today because as I am driving to work, I see a man in a wig and a dress driving a Grand Cherokee next to me. It is a reasonable expensive, fashionable pale tan houndstooth work suit with a white blouse underneath, and he is clean - so it isn't a long night of partying or anything. No, he is trhying to pull this off.

But please. First he has the man hand's, he can't help that I get it. A little lotion can't hurt. Maybe some nail polish (at least don't bite them).

But he has a red/blond wig on (with a stylish just-below-the-shoulder cut) and he has big black man eyebrows. Yes honey, it hurts to pluck or wax, welcome to womanhood. He is not wearing a lick of make-up; and he needs it. I mean, no blush, no powder and male features. Plenty of women don't wear make up, I know that. But they were born women and have been taking care of their skin. This guy looked like he had work construction until he slapped on the dress. His skin wasn't "leathery" like from the sun, but wrinkled like from work in the sun.

And, when the wig blew into his mouth, he put his head back, shook it and made the "damn it" face in the car. Not the overly feminine brush back with the pinky, not even the sexy head wave (and any good trany knows the sexy head wave comes with the whoel wrong body attitude). No, this was the annoyed, I gotta wear this stupid hairshake.

I am thinking maybe he was about to get laid off somewhere and he figures this will be the basis of his lawsuite. But still, you gotta put SOME work into it.

Tuesday, November 15, 2005

So great week-end

Eddie was in CN for training over the week, so on Friday I flew to New York for a week-end with him.

Let me say this, Eddie did a great job. As you might or might not know, Eddie is not the planner. But he had his wits about him this week-end and showed me a GREAT time.

Friday night we went to see Jarhead. Odd movie. It's not a war movie at all (and not pro or con), it is a movie about a few kids in desert storm. Desert storm was 6 months of waiting and 4 days of war. this movie kind of shows it. Half way through the movie, I thought it was long, boring and kind of stunk. But at the end of the movie, I loved it. I don't know when that changed, but maybe it was my settling into it's pace and story. Or not.

Saturday day, we went to see Sweeny Todd with Patti LaPone. Patti LaPone is my fav-or-ite actress on the stage. When I was in High School a bunch of us came up to the Music Center to see Evita before it went to Broadway (and before it was known as EVITA!). She was a revelation to me. She was amazing. I have seen her since then in concert, but only once in a show. I saw her in London in Sunset Blvd (before Idiot Lloyd Weber decided to put Glenn (I-couldn't-carry-a-note-with-a-wheel-barrow-and-super-glue) Close in it.

Sweeny Todd is a dark musical (about a wrongly accused man who comes back from prison to kill his accuser) that was actually done great and was funny! Patti LaPone made it great.

Then, Saturday night, we saw Saturday Night Live. We actually went to the dress rehersal where they do a couple more skits and jokes on the news so they see what does and doesn't work in front of an audience. We had little "neppl" reserved seats so we didn't have to wait in line. It was Gurrrrr-REAT (as Tony the Tiger would say).

It was a really nice week-end.

Thursday, November 10, 2005

SeWat


SEWAT - Scott and Ed's Weird Ass Terriers

It must be a sub-species of Terriers that only inhabit our homes.

First it was the hair licking thing. Our dogs like our wet hair inthe Jaquzi. Most visitors dog's won't venture near the Jaquzi. The funny thing is that Trevor started it right away. Odd.

Then today. It was raining. He woke up at 5:30 (like freakin' clock work) to go pee. So we go outside. It is wet. He stands around, won't walk on the rocks to pee. So I wait and wait and wait. Still nothing. I go inside and get his leash (sometimes you have to force him to stand on the rocks to pee). I stand outside with him. Nuttin'. I walk up and down. Nuttin'. Exasperted, I implore, "Trevor, would you PLEASE 'Go Pee" (which is the command). Nuttin'.

Fine. I open the door, take off the leash. He bolts into the bathroom upstairs, where the pee pad is laid out in preperation for the day, and pees. I swear him sigh as he did it.

As you probably know, my other dogs have wet feet issues as well (they have a problem peeing if their feet are wet).

SeWat

Wednesday, November 09, 2005

Four days of work with the businesses nearly done

I have been working with our international business partners (read screaming mimi's) for the last three days - I am nearly done.

It has been a fun and exciting experience. In the sense that "fun" means scary, dreadful days of listening to the yell at us and "exciting" means ex-screw-ciatingly boring recaps of everything we have ever done wrong for the last 8 years.

Wheeee!

Almost over.

Monday, November 07, 2005

The less said about College Footbal this week-end the better

Really.

Wisconsin did not look good and UCLA looked like something Trevor would leave as an accident on the floor.

As for Eddie, his day only got better on Sunday. Eddie had changed flights so he could go out to the desert with Lynn and I. so he took the 1 PM flight. That meant landing around 10 and an hour drive to campus (he is at GE University this week).

Well, at 3:30 PM I got his call that his flight still hadn't left. Yikes! I think he landed after Midnight, then had a 90 minute car ride, then had to check in. And class started bright and early for our Eddie.

As you may know, he doesn't like bright and early even on Pacific Coast Time.

Friday, November 04, 2005

Tine Fey Mascot for November


Work and life keep me insane. Tina Fey helps keep me sane one night a week (during the Saturday Night Live news).

Some examples:
FEY -- "Yesterday, Dick Cheney's chief of staff Scooter Libby was indicted on five felony counts ranging from perjury to obstruction of justice in the Valerie Plame leak case. For more on this story, ask Scooter. Apparently that mofo'll tell you anything."

FEY -- "If convicted, Libby could face the following penalties: obstruction of justice - 10 years in prison. Making false statements - 5 years. Perjury - 5 years. Going to jail with the name Scooter - priceless."

FEY -- "The indictments against Scooter Libby were announced at a press conference Friday by Special Prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald. Trim, soft-spoken, manly Patrick Fitzgerald. His clear, steady voice, piercing blue eyes and impeachable integrity restoring my faith in America and making me want to do things I have never done before. I love you, Patrick Fitzgerald, because you don't lie to me. I love you."

And the ever popular:



The spilt was greeted by gaspes. Because people, if these two are bored of sex with each, what hope is there for us.


tina-fey-writing.jpg

Thursday, November 03, 2005

Some days you feel like a nut

Some days you feel like a nut.
Some days you don't.
Almond Joy has nuts.
My job is ripping the soul out of me.

Whoops, that just slipped in there. I believe I have completed a rather nifty trick. I now have people on 3 continents pissed off at me. Apparently Business Partnerships Director also means "chief guy to scream at when no one else in the damn organization will listen".

Wheee!

Tuesday, November 01, 2005

Conseratives Do NOt want Vaccine for Cervical Cancer

Okay, this nincompoopery - not ranting. Not funny ninmcompoopery. More like very sad.

There is a new vaccine that protects against one kind of Cervical Cancer - the kind that is transmitted by HPV a Sexual Transmitted Disese.

But the President has appointed a Focus on the Family member to the health board that decides how to immunize kids. Most members say this immunization should be given to all girls before puberty (along with measles, and other vaccines). But since the virus is sexually transmitted - even thought it leads to a form of cancerm that infects 10,000 women a year - the vaccine should not be given. It might lead more people to have sex.

So what is the cost of putting nincompoops in charge. So far, 3,700 female deaths per year. (But, Focus on the Family prefers to think of it as 3,700 harlot deaths per year).

Key paragraphs from the newspaper article.

The jockeying reflects the growing influence social conservatives, who had long felt overlooked by Washington, have gained on a broad spectrum of policy issues under the Bush administration. In this case, a former member of the conservative group Focus on the Family serves on the federal panel that is playing a pivotal role in deciding how the vaccine is used.

"What the Bush administration has done has taken this coterie of people and put them into very influential positions in Washington," said James Morone Jr., a professor of political science at Brown University. "And it's having an effect in debates like this."

The vaccine protects women against strains of a ubiquitous germ called the human papilloma virus. Although many strains of the virus are innocuous, some can cause cancerous lesions on the cervix (the outer end of the uterus), making them the primary cause of this cancer in the United States. Cervical cancer strikes more than 10,000 U.S. women each year, killing more than 3,700.

The vaccine appears to be virtually 100 percent effective against two of the most common cancer-causing HPV strains. Merck, whose vaccine is further along, plans to ask the Food and Drug Administration by the end of the year for approval to sell the shots.