tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-50150299569005858522024-03-07T20:56:55.068-08:00Diary of an N.JohnThe semi-daily (maybe even monthly!) musings of one formerly laid off, unemployed mechanics apprentice (journeyman now!) and his tireless search for workings (which have ended! I work now).njohnfixeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09990372780512492092noreply@blogger.comBlogger57125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5015029956900585852.post-81350599389302767422011-06-30T18:14:00.000-07:002011-06-30T18:15:16.291-07:00Robert Who?Aloha, fellow interwebbers. Long time no post but, alas, the local sports team decided to make a run for the championship and I was indisposed for much of the spring (beer and couch and tv, bitches!)<br />
<div><br />
</div><div>I'm sure by now most of you, being the savvy internet users I know you to be, are aware of the existence of quite possibly the greatest action figure of our time. Many of you may be thinking "hell yeah, Bumblebee!" Others may quickly see images of Vanilla Ice, in all his vanillic and icy glory. Well you're both wrong! Allow me to introduce, those of you as yet unaware, <i>Robert Cop.</i></div><div><i><br />
</i></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-WSZCc84E5iE/Tgv2hz6WVBI/AAAAAAAAAQE/AKF3rGEINu4/s1600/Robertcop.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-WSZCc84E5iE/Tgv2hz6WVBI/AAAAAAAAAQE/AKF3rGEINu4/s320/Robertcop.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Your move, weirdo!</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div><i><br />
</i><br />
<i></i><br />
It seems as though, in the land of cheap foreign knock-off action figures, this is about as great as it gets. We've all seen Spader-Man and Specialman, and while those are great in their own right, the names given them are still fairly true to the original (that being Spider Man and Superman for those uh... unfamiliar). So what sets Robert Cop apart from the pack? Well, I think the answer is obvious!<br />
<i><br />
</i><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-MRPabxzlU_w/Tg0aD6oDXYI/AAAAAAAAAQc/WM_HpKSXETU/s1600/gun.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-MRPabxzlU_w/Tg0aD6oDXYI/AAAAAAAAAQc/WM_HpKSXETU/s320/gun.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bent gun is bent</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Now we can expect a certain low level of quality when it comes to asian knock-offs, and it's evident here. I'm not even sure if his joints move. But clearly the strangest part of this particular figure is the name. Why <i>Robert</i> Cop? Of the many hundreds of words our friends overseas could have used to only slightly plagiarize (slightly..) RoboCop, why did they decide to change Robo and then, why ROBERT?<br />
<br />
Robo man. Robo Detective. RoboPoliceman, RoboNarc, Robobotcop, all of these are much more in tune with the idea of the character. Even PeterCop would have been better considering the actor (Peter Weller).<br />
<br />
Thankfully for us, Robert Cop won the naming contest, and has spawned even a few tribute videos on Youtube.<br />
<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="349" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/J83U5t-tmEM" width="425"></iframe><br />
<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="349" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/gbTw2FtSbNQ" width="425"></iframe><br />
<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="349" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/OKcCDour0kc" width="425"></iframe><br />
<br />
That's our Robert Cop! <br />
<br />
(credit to Youtuber <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 15px;"><b>DrNuyenVanFaulk and flightrisker </b>for the brilliance in editing here)</span></span></div>njohnfixeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09990372780512492092noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5015029956900585852.post-53585252761298605622011-02-12T15:51:00.000-08:002011-02-12T15:51:12.344-08:00The Dark Tower<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5nLYDNCQEYc/TVcPRMSqafI/AAAAAAAAAOM/zhRRIJnWjQ4/s1600/the-dark-tower-stephen-king-movie.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5nLYDNCQEYc/TVcPRMSqafI/AAAAAAAAAOM/zhRRIJnWjQ4/s320/the-dark-tower-stephen-king-movie.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Epic</td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
For those of us who have read the entire Dark Tower saga, news that it was going to brought to the big (and small) screens has had a two pronged effect:<br />
<br />
<ol><li>Elation</li>
<li>Horror!</li>
</ol><div>It was announced in September of last year that the Dark Tower movies were finally going ahead, with Ron Howard taking on the daunting task of bringing Roland Deschains world/time (as well as Eddies, Susannahs etc) to life in film. The announcement came as a bit of a surprise to me, mostly because it had been long heard something was going to be made, but the news was stagnant. Bringing 7 books to film, as has been proven with Harry Potter, is no easy feat; keeping key actors through 7+ movies, adapting broad story arcs to fit the limited time film gets, deciding what is omitted etc. So what are they to do?</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-6MIL-2MlXSg/TVcW2yrb5KI/AAAAAAAAAOY/bRwwkM-G8CQ/s1600/Ron-Howard.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-6MIL-2MlXSg/TVcW2yrb5KI/AAAAAAAAAOY/bRwwkM-G8CQ/s320/Ron-Howard.jpg" width="248" /></a></div><div><br />
</div><div>From the <a href="http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/showtracker/2010/09/stephen-king-the-dark-tower-ron-howard.html">LA Times</a>, September 9, 2010.</div><blockquote><div style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 10px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-align: left;">In an unconventional move, Stephen King's "The Dark Tower" -- comprising seven novels, short stories and comic books -- will be made into both three films and a television series.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 10px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-align: left;">The unique deal will have Ron Howard directing the first film in the trilogy and the first season of the TV series, Universal Pictures and NBC Universal Television Entertainment announced Wednesday afternoon.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 10px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-align: left;">"The Dark Tower" centers on the sole survivor in a line of knightly gunslingers, Roland Deschain, who has been charged with finding a Dark Tower in order to save humanity.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 10px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-align: left;">The first film will be quickly followed by the television series, which will lead to the second film. The TV series will then resume until the third film is released. No word yet on when production is slated to begin on the first film.</div></blockquote><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-B0G0r0OPdZU/TVcbmAiyHNI/AAAAAAAAAOg/S9TtQhzD9EU/s1600/darktower_big.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="170" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-B0G0r0OPdZU/TVcbmAiyHNI/AAAAAAAAAOg/S9TtQhzD9EU/s320/darktower_big.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
From darktowermovies.com:<br />
<blockquote><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 26px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 32px;">Preliminary Outline for the Films/TV Series</span></blockquote><blockquote>This is not going to be a direct book-to-screen adaptation and is even going to involve King writing additional content, in the form of a prequel comic book.</blockquote><blockquote>Howard and co. are still hashing out the details but the initial plan seems to be;</blockquote><blockquote><ul><li><b>Feature Length Film #1 </b></li>
<li><b>TV Season (used as a bridge to…)</b></li>
<li><b>Feature Length Film #2</b></li>
<li><b>TV Season(s) (it’s unclear how many)</b></li>
<li><b>Feature Length Film #3 </b></li>
</ul></blockquote><blockquote>Not a lot has been said about the TV series, which would be shown between the second and third movies, other than that the story in Season 2 will evolve around Roland as a young Gunslinger, with King’s prequel comic book series being released to fill out the storyline.</blockquote><blockquote>The dedication the cast will need to make for this project would predict that we’ll not see anysuperstars, which will probably be for the better as we’ll have fewer preconceptions over who they choose to play Roland.</blockquote><blockquote>One final piece of good news is that Howard has given priority to the project. Akiva Goldsman is writing the script as we speak and both Howard and Grazer have cleared all other projects to make sure they can get started on this as soon as possible.</blockquote><blockquote>Howard is currently in production on “The Dilemna”, due for release in January, so we could expect filming on The Dark Tower to begin as early as 2011.</blockquote><div><br />
</div><div>So. Based on that, the Elation</div><div><br />
</div>The Dark Tower series is, without hyperbole, most genuinely the greatest story I've ever read. I've read all 7 books twice through now, own almost all of the comic series, and have a copy of the Complete Concordance by Robin Furth. It is an absolutely amazing journey through the brilliant mind of Stephen King. It's one of those stories where you just let yourself be taken away; you open to the page marker, and get ready to be thrown into time and place.<br />
<br />
To hear the news that someone has taken on the daunting task of bringing Dark Tower to life is amazing. I can't wait to see how the vision I have of Roland's world compares to someone else's. I can't wait to be able to immerse myself in the story, the characters, and everything all over again. I'm excited that it will bring the books to a new light, and maybe new fans (I know I have a few friends who write off (no pun intended) King by saying "not interested in stories about killer toasters"). I can't wait.<br />
<br />
The Horror?<br />
<br />
Oh shit, they're making Dark Tower into movies! So much can go wrong with projects like this; terrible acting, horrible writing, cheesy lovey shit, bad or overused effects, etc. In one fell swoop, the entire thing can be ruined. Imagine if Lord of the Rings had been made by Michael Bay. Picture Transformers of the Rings. Not pretty. This could be either the greatest, or the worst. It's a fine line.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5SEr0zFQjFA/TVcW1FwJHxI/AAAAAAAAAOQ/lH_kIW2H4ro/s1600/Beautiful_mind.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="205" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5SEr0zFQjFA/TVcW1FwJHxI/AAAAAAAAAOQ/lH_kIW2H4ro/s320/Beautiful_mind.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>That said, I do have faith in Ron Howard to do the project right. He has an excellent track record making movies that effect the perfect mood ie: A Beautiful Mind, Backdraft, Parenthood, Willow. These are all great films. I wasn't as big a fan of Da Vinci code, but let's be honest here, Dan Brown is nowhere near Stephen King in the writing department. Howard did what he could with it as far as I'm concerned, and I believe he will have a lot more to work with for this project, especially given King's offerings to the project which should set the course correctly.<br />
<br />
Part of the fun for the fans so far has been playing the actor game. Who IS going to play Roland Deschain? Most had pegged Viggo Mortensen for the job since LOTR. Then there were rumblings of Christian Bale. And then?<br />
<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-NhgqTQkvbcE/TVcW19O8SnI/AAAAAAAAAOU/kLNK6iDbxck/s1600/javier-bardem.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-NhgqTQkvbcE/TVcW19O8SnI/AAAAAAAAAOU/kLNK6iDbxck/s1600/javier-bardem.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Call it.</td></tr>
</tbody></table> From <a href="http://www.comingsoon.net/news/movienews.php?id=73528">comingsoon.net</a>:<br />
<blockquote><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px;">Ron Howard may have his sights set on Javier Bardem for the lead in his cross-platform, multi-part film and television adaptation of Stephen King's "The Dark Tower" series.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px;"><i style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Deadline</i></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px;">is reporting that Bardem has been offered the part of Roland Deschain, the Gunslinger.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px;"><br style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px;"><br style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px;">Envisioned as three films and a television series (to star the same cast),</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px;"><a href="http://www.comingsoon.net/films.php?id=65641" style="color: rgb(153, 0, 0) !important; font-size: 12px; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; outline-color: initial; outline-style: none; outline-width: initial; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;">The Dark Tower</a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px;">will bring to the screen King's fantasy epic that spreads across seven published novels. Howard plans to direct the first part of the series and would at least oversee the rest of the massive adaptation.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px;"><br style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px;"><br style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px;">Bardem most recently appeared in</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px;"><b style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">Biutiful</b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px;">in a part that has landed him an Academy Award nomination. (He previously won a Best Supporting Actor award for his part in 2008's</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px;"><b style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">No Country for Old Men</b></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px;">).</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px;"><br style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px;"><br style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px;"><a href="http://www.comingsoon.net/films.php?id=65641" style="color: rgb(153, 0, 0) !important; font-size: 12px; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; outline-color: initial; outline-style: none; outline-width: initial; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;">The Dark Tower</a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px;">has a tentative release date of May 17, 2013.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px;"><span style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;"><br style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" /><br style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;" />Read more: <a href="http://www.comingsoon.net/news/movienews.php?id=73528#ixzz1Dn3lpdzE" style="color: #003399; font-size: 12px; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; outline-color: initial; outline-style: none; outline-width: initial; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;">Javier Bardem Offered Dark Tower Lead? - ComingSoon.net</a> <a href="http://www.comingsoon.net/news/movienews.php?id=73528#ixzz1Dn3lpdzE" style="color: #003399; font-size: 12px; font-weight: bold; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0px; outline-color: initial; outline-style: none; outline-width: initial; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-decoration: none;">http://www.comingsoon.net/news/movienews.php?id=73528#ixzz1Dn3lpdzE</a></span></span></blockquote>Perfect. Well, I think Daniel Day-Lewis would have been the greatest choice, but I don't think you can go wrong with the steady, firm dealing Javier Bardem. This pick shows me that the people behind this movie franchise are serious about it. With a big name oscar winner such as Bardem as the flagship on this, the rest of the project will hopefully fall into place just as nicely.<br />
<br />
As noted above, the first movie has a tentative release date of May 17, 2013. Those of you who haven't read the Dark Tower yet, I highly, highly suggest you go out and at least buy the first book. Read it, and see if you aren't swept into the magically twisted Old West realm Roland resides in, as it grabs you with its opening line:<br />
<br />
<br />
<blockquote style="text-align: center;"><b><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">The man in black fled across the desert, and the gunslinger followed.</span></i></b></blockquote><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Uz3Qe7IfSxU/TVcY7BZt8hI/AAAAAAAAAOc/WFKcgkxMJeo/s1600/LS-gunslinger_followed.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="201" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Uz3Qe7IfSxU/TVcY7BZt8hI/AAAAAAAAAOc/WFKcgkxMJeo/s320/LS-gunslinger_followed.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>njohnfixeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09990372780512492092noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5015029956900585852.post-13627100561918784312011-02-11T17:21:00.000-08:002011-02-11T17:21:09.965-08:00Success<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-S6_khQpxR0k/TVXeWB9uf9I/AAAAAAAAAOA/cTb3gR92sSw/s1600/Good-News3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="224" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-S6_khQpxR0k/TVXeWB9uf9I/AAAAAAAAAOA/cTb3gR92sSw/s320/Good-News3.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
I'm a little late in making this post, but better late than never. Same goes with a job. Better late than never. The company I mentioned 2 posts ago took me on recently. For them, it seems, it wasn't a question of if, but when. They were impressed with me personally as well as my experience, and they have a plan which would be to gear me towards one of their equipment lines specifically. I've started in the shop, but will soon be getting a service van and become a field technician. My experience working for Cummins came in handy, as their line of port trucks all run them, and they badly require someone who can become a go-to guy for these trucks. Nowadays everything diesel seems to be going to aftertreatment systems for emissions, and since I have hands on experience with it and most of their 30 or so techs don't, I've already proven myself useful on a few occasions.<br />
<br />
So! Things are going great. It was a long 4 months. Thanks to everyone for sticking with it as I have, this has been fun. I just have no idea what to do with this blog now. Surely a daily update of what I did today wouldn't be as interesting (since there's no real goal to be achieved). So what do I do now? Movie blog? Music blog? I'm not sure how I could be unique in that regard. Gaming? Millions already.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9LQeYQv0SoI/TVXgZnKl4tI/AAAAAAAAAOI/LyvzI5-nbeI/s1600/Blook_image-thumb-415x285-45.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="219" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9LQeYQv0SoI/TVXgZnKl4tI/AAAAAAAAAOI/LyvzI5-nbeI/s320/Blook_image-thumb-415x285-45.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<br />
I'll have to come up with something. Maybe just start writing a blook? Web Log Book... get it? That might be interesting....<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>njohnfixeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09990372780512492092noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5015029956900585852.post-43560424038278492142011-01-31T20:06:00.000-08:002011-01-31T20:06:59.887-08:00Canadians Just Became World's Biggest Internet Losers<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TUeF2ZzlUEI/AAAAAAAAAN0/Z2CAE_58lYA/s1600/money-black-hole.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="238" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TUeF2ZzlUEI/AAAAAAAAAN0/Z2CAE_58lYA/s320/money-black-hole.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bye bye, money.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Wow, we already have some of the slowest bandwidth speeds in the world, now they're going to cap it and make us pay per usage? Give me a break. <br />
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From TheTyee.ca<br />
<blockquote><div class="first">YouTube, Facebook, Netflix, Twitter, iPad. . . and whatever else is about to take the world by storm, making all of those digital breakthroughs seem old news. Surely it's obvious by now that Canadians are going to be better off if we foster digital media creativity, rather than leaving it to people in other countries.</div>But tell that to the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission, the body supposedly responsible for regulating electronic media for our well-being. The CRTC has decided to allow Bell and other big telecom companies to change the way Canadians are billed for Internet access. Metering, or usage-based billing (UBB), will mean that service providers can charge per byte in addition to their basic access charges.<br />
The move is sure to stifle digital creativity in Canada while the rest of the world looks on and snickers.<br />
This is not what a lot of small Internet providers who use Bell Canada's infrastructure wanted. But they are now subject to Bell Canada's requirements, and will be forced to usage-bill their own customers. That's how it's already rippling out to create an entirely different economy of Internet use in Canada. That's what the big telecoms wanted and the CRTC is in the process of giving it to them. </blockquote><blockquote> <strong>Hogwash</strong><br />
Throughout, the public has been bamboozled and divided in its opinion by the presentation of easy caricatures. That damn bandwidth hog next door downloading endless porn, shooter games and episodes of NCIS -- why not tag him with an extra bill for clogging the pipes? After all, the telecoms can't be expected to lose money on the guy who comes to the all-you-can-eat buffet and scarfs down all the fried chicken, right?<br />
<div class="block block-adspace-full"> <div class="block-inner"> <div class="adspace d300x250"> <a href="http://ad.thetyee.ca/www/delivery/ck.php?oaparams=2__bannerid=1079__zoneid=45__source=News__cb=a890a2f6cd__oadest=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.anrdoezrs.net%2Fclick-3812417-10801844" target="_blank"> </a><div id="beacon_a890a2f6cd" style="left: 0px; position: absolute; top: 0px; visibility: hidden;"><img alt="" height="0" src="http://ad.thetyee.ca/www/delivery/lg.php?bannerid=1079&campaignid=883&zoneid=45&source=News&loc=1&referer=http%3A%2F%2Fthetyee.ca%2FMediacheck%2F2011%2F01%2F26%2FInternetLosers%2F&cb=a890a2f6cd" style="height: 0px; width: 0px;" width="0" /></div></div></div></div>Except <a href="http://www.zeropaid.com/news/92025/canadian-isp-overage-fees-not-meant-to-recover-costs/" target="_blank">officials</a> with smaller service providers say what Bell Canada is charging for "overages" is well beyond, even many times more, what it really costs to provide the extra bytes to customers. So what's this really about? Bear in mind that Bell Canada and other big telecoms also are invested heavily in an old-fashioned media-delivery model called television. If you now have to pay by the byte to live your version of a rich digital life on the Internet, maybe the hits to your bank account will push you back in front of the television set. The problem is that trying to herd Canadians in 2011 back to commercial-laden programs on TV is like trying to drive back the tide. Anyone with children knows they view the television set as a moribund, one-way screen versus the computer's portal into a realm of interactivity and content on demand. </blockquote><blockquote></blockquote><blockquote> That's the future, and everyone knows it. So why aren't we preserving the level playing field that has made the Internet such a vibrant cultural commons?<br />
Forget that caricature of the slobbering porn addict next door. Canadians accessed a treasure trove of <a href="http://www.nfb.ca/" target="_blank">National Film Board</a> works by the millions of downloads last year. Universities and libraries across the country are working to move priceless archives onto the Internet, where, the idea was, they'd be available to all. Not if it's too expensive to download them. </blockquote><blockquote> <strong>Backwards thinking</strong><br />
Consider the predicament of a small, independent website like The Tyee. Already scraping by on limited resources, but recognizing our audience's desire for more audio and video, we are working with a network of multimedia producers who really know how to stretch a dollar. But they tell us that UBB threatens to make it too expensive for them to craft their products, considering what they need to download while doing their work, the amounts we can pay and the niche audiences likely to listen and watch.<br />
So there you have it. Just as the world is ready to feast on what Canadians might cook up in the way of multimedia 3.0, Canada decides to meter the Internet, tilting the table sharply towards old-school TV networks and big corporations that can absorb the higher cost of doing business.<br />
NDP digital affairs critic Charlie Angus gets what's at stake. "We've seen this all before with cellphones," he said last week. "Allowing the Internet Service Providers to ding you every time you download is a rip-off. Canada is already falling behind other countries in terms of choice, accessibility and pricing for the Internet. We need clear rules that put consumers first."<br />
<strong></strong></blockquote><blockquote><strong>Fight's just started</strong><br />
Forty thousand people have signed an online petition called <a href="http://openmedia.ca/meter" target="_blank">Stop The Meter</a>. Perhaps their influence caused the CRTC to soften its original decision yesterday. The regulators mandated that while big telecom firms can force smaller ISPs using their bandwidth to usage-bill their customers, those smaller ISPs must receive a 15 per cent discount from the big telecoms. That will help the small ISPs remain competitive, but it doesn't change the fact that how Canadians must pay for using the Internet has been radically transformed in a way that is out of synch with the rest of the world. <br />
Let's take the CRTC's bit of back pedaling as a sign that it might really recognize the error of its ways after receiving a greater, sustained outpouring of public opinion. <br />
And if the regulators still don't get the message, well then it looks like Canada's political parties have had a prime election issue handed to them. Who will fight for the consumer, and for Canadian creativity?</blockquote><br />
Article <a href="http://thetyee.ca/Mediacheck/2011/01/26/InternetLosers/">here.</a> Sign the petition no matter where you're from.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TUeGw0jGiJI/AAAAAAAAAN4/qpQbLVqySl8/s1600/funny-pictures-cat-steals-your-money1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="245" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TUeGw0jGiJI/AAAAAAAAAN4/qpQbLVqySl8/s320/funny-pictures-cat-steals-your-money1.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The cats name is Roger Bell.</td></tr>
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</h2>njohnfixeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09990372780512492092noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5015029956900585852.post-54247972005481136822011-01-03T14:19:00.000-08:002011-01-03T14:19:45.976-08:00Hay Guise!<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">hehhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td></tr>
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Long time no type. It was a long 6 weeks at school, and a hectic Christmas/New Years. I hope you're all doing well and survived, and are well on your way to keeping up with your resolutions. Right? Yeah! Right then.<br />
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Last day of school was our final exam, which covered the previous 3 weeks of school. It was easily the toughest 3 weeks I've spent during my 3 levels of training thus far. It covered mechanical fuel systems, and electronic fuel systems. How can you cover all of that in 3 weeks? Well, you can't really. The program needs to be extended by at least 2 weeks to really get into all of it thoroughly enough. There also needs to be a good curriculum shuffle to edit out some of these systems we don't see anymore (Cummins PT Fuel System anyone?).<br />
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All in all it was a good 6 weeks, and though I didn't do as well as I'd hoped on the last exam, my first exam mark carried me well enough. I got my transcript from the ITA a couple weeks ago, and came through with an 88. Now I'm a 4th year apprentice, and have only one more level to go before I'm a red seal certified journeyman.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TSJKxGNRNmI/AAAAAAAAANQ/hTO7de23gr4/s1600/slide_10280_135297_large.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="233" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TSJKxGNRNmI/AAAAAAAAANQ/hTO7de23gr4/s320/slide_10280_135297_large.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Should have just gotten one of these. Problem solved.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Had some fun when I got back, my computer died. The power supply crapped the bed, and subsequently fried my motherboard. Smelled great. I hadn't realized the mobo was done until I plugged in the new power supply, turned the switch on the back of it to on, and all the case fans came on full power. Hmm. That's not supposed to happen. Anyway, inspected the mobo and found the fried spots. Can't miss em once you notice them. I went and got a new one today, installed it and connected everything, and we're good to go. Slightly better performance now too which is nice, able to use the RAM I had, same chip etc. Working nicely.<br />
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How was everyones holiday? Good I hope, and look forward to being more updated with <br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TSJLQArB9BI/AAAAAAAAANY/ynS4Fcg6ruY/s1600/images.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="191" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TSJLQArB9BI/AAAAAAAAANY/ynS4Fcg6ruY/s320/images.jpg" width="264" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">To work on things like THIS</td></tr>
</tbody></table>my blog from now on. I'm getting closer to employment, I had a meeting with a company after Christmas, and they've said they will take me on after the post-Christmas slowdown. Let's hope that pans out. <br />
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Till next time folks!njohnfixeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09990372780512492092noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5015029956900585852.post-68353981498787103192010-12-12T15:05:00.000-08:002010-12-12T15:05:50.110-08:00Ahm awn TEE VEE<object width="455" height="278"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/vkG7FGVWsLA&hl=en_US&feature=player_embedded&version=3"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/vkG7FGVWsLA&hl=en_US&feature=player_embedded&version=3" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" allowScriptAccess="always" width="455" height="278"></embed></object>njohnfixeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09990372780512492092noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5015029956900585852.post-1807989632087336162010-11-29T19:44:00.000-08:002010-11-29T19:44:59.266-08:00What Happened To The Other 6 Points?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TPRwtz4vIPI/AAAAAAAAAM8/IdHRGOO07Qs/s1600/whathappened4pts.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="238" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TPRwtz4vIPI/AAAAAAAAAM8/IdHRGOO07Qs/s320/whathappened4pts.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Once in 3rd grade, I got a 96 on my spelling test, highest mark in the class, I was so proud. I brought it home to show my dad, "What happened to the other 4 points?" he says. <b>FUCK YOU, FUCK. YOU</b>.</td></tr>
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Love the Sopranos. Anyway, we had our mid-term exam on Friday, covering everything from the first 3 weeks (Electrical, Charging Systems, Starting Systems, Emissions, Ignition Systems) and I got a 94. Highest mark in the class. Luckily for me, unlike this guy, the reception I got for this mark was a bit better than he got. Which is great, because I don't want to end up in a state hospital with an aging mobster for a friend.<br />
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3 more weeks to go now, the last 3 concentrating on diesel fuel systems. It's going to get tougher now. On the flipside, I've gotten 2 interesting calls in the last couple weeks. One from an prospective employer who is going to interview me in a week or so, and one from an ex employer who would like to have me back. Kickass, takes a bit of the pressure off.<br />
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It's also been raging cold up here, with snow. It got down to -25C there for a while (-13F for my American friends) and that ... well it sucked. I couldn't regulate the temperature of my feet, and my truck was really not interested in starting in the morning.njohnfixeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09990372780512492092noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5015029956900585852.post-45715891928329482702010-11-16T20:36:00.000-08:002010-11-16T20:36:04.725-08:00We're Through The Looking Glass Here People<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TONaPxiHMrI/AAAAAAAAAMs/PoSPp0geSoU/s1600/146.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TONaPxiHMrI/AAAAAAAAAMs/PoSPp0geSoU/s1600/146.jpg" /></a></div><br />
The deeper I get into this course, the more it becomes apparent that any outside activies (or, to apply an analogy from school ie: concentration to lack of = voltage drops across resistors) are going to have to drop to a minimum for me to get the most out of it.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TONaUTE9mGI/AAAAAAAAAM0/QBdGccYPYtc/s1600/noise-study-t12150.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="226" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TONaUTE9mGI/AAAAAAAAAM0/QBdGccYPYtc/s320/noise-study-t12150.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Before...</td></tr>
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Thankfully, Mr. Rorshach Redemption has provided me with an amazingly helpful study too so far. Some of you may have caught it in his comment in the "School's In" post about using something called Simply Noise. I went and checked it out, and have made excellent use of it so far. With 2 screaming children living up above me (who feel the necessity to scream randomly at the top of their lungs, or randomly drop massively heavy objects on the floor) this has become an amazingly essential tool for me. While listening to music while study, I end up digressing much like I talked about in the last post. Here's an example:<br />
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<blockquote>The difference between a circuit breaker and a fuse is that a circuit breaker is a party in the u-s-aaaa, yeahheahhhheaheah it's a party in the u-s-aaaa!!!</blockquote><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TONbbmuivEI/AAAAAAAAAM4/9uC6P3tEoAg/s1600/08.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="293" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TONbbmuivEI/AAAAAAAAAM4/9uC6P3tEoAg/s320/08.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is in my brain</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br />
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Not entirely productive or helpful, and sure does make for some interesting answers during next mornings quiz. Simply Noise effectively blocks out screaming kids, catchy tunes, and any other outside noise and has allowed me to concentrate and retain more. Thanks for that, sir.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TONaSJCAGJI/AAAAAAAAAMw/cGSrRhjeJ4w/s1600/images.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TONaSJCAGJI/AAAAAAAAAMw/cGSrRhjeJ4w/s1600/images.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">After!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>In any case, posts are going to be few and far between from me. I'll do my best to update where I can (so far I'm doing good, the alternator my classmate and I rebuilt today performed great, and daily quizzes have more often than not been in the 90s) but it will be sporadic. Stay frosty, friends.njohnfixeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09990372780512492092noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5015029956900585852.post-45301578757565197712010-11-14T14:25:00.000-08:002010-11-14T14:26:56.918-08:00Thought Digression From Boardwalk Empire<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TOBf47eGEaI/AAAAAAAAAMc/ILat40PtSJc/s1600/boardwalk-empire-michael-shannon.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TOBf47eGEaI/AAAAAAAAAMc/ILat40PtSJc/s320/boardwalk-empire-michael-shannon.jpg" width="218" /></a></div><br />
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It's funny sometimes how my train of thought traverses its way through my head. Yesterday I was watching last weeks episode of Boardwalk Empire. Quite often while watching shows like this (or Breaking Bad, The Wire, etc.) I start thinking about the actors in it; "Wow, that guy's awesome, why haven't I seen him before?" or "He should win an Emmy for this role, I wonder if he ever has?" etc etc etc. So I start researching them as I'm watching the show, checking out wikipedia and imdb for anything interesting. Here's where the digression begins.<br />
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I started out by looking up Michael Shannon, who plays Nelson Van Alden the Federal Prohibition agent in Boardwalk Empire. Great actor, plays the role brilliantly. As I'm looking into his filmography, I see he's been in a ton of movies I've seen before: Groundhog Day, Tigerland, Vanilla Sky, Pearl Harbour, 8 Mile, Bad Boys II and more. Wow, quite the list of movies right? I then notice in 2008 he was in a movie called Revolutionary Road, and not only that, was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. Impressive! My hunches were right, this guy is pretty good. So then I wonder who he was up against in 2008 for that award, so I click the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor link in a new tab. <br />
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Before I was able to scroll down the list and see, the superlatives section caught my eye, and I'm looking at who has the most wins, the most nominations, youngest winner etc. So I'm looking at the list of actors with most awards, and Daniel Day-Lewis' name jumps out at me. Right! My favourite actor, wonder what he's been up to lately since There Will Be Blood? New tab!<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TOBgUQnlmgI/AAAAAAAAAMg/pBAj_oN492Y/s1600/There-Will-Be-Blood.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="192" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TOBgUQnlmgI/AAAAAAAAAMg/pBAj_oN492Y/s320/There-Will-Be-Blood.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
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So now I'm reading about Daniel Day-Lewis. His life, his career, and his long list of eccentricities on and off set while preparing for a role. From wikipedia:<br />
<blockquote>Day-Lewis put his personal version of "<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Method_acting" title="Method acting">method acting</a>" into full use in 1989 with his performance as <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christy_Brown" title="Christy Brown">Christy Brown</a> in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jim_Sheridan" title="Jim Sheridan">Jim Sheridan</a>'s <i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/My_Left_Foot_%28film%29" title="My Left Foot (film)">My Left Foot</a></i> which won him numerous awards, including the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Academy_Award_for_Best_Actor" title="Academy Award for Best Actor">Academy Award for Best Actor</a>. During filming, his eccentricities came to the fore, due to his refusal to break character.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-OnlineBio_3-8"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_Day-Lewis#cite_note-OnlineBio-3">[4]</a></sup> Playing a severely paralyzed character on screen, off screen Day-Lewis had to be moved around the set in his wheelchair, and crew members would curse at having to lift him over camera and lighting wires, all so that he might gain insight into all aspects of Brown's life, including the embarrassments.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Fires_11-2"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_Day-Lewis#cite_note-Fires-11">[12]</a></sup> He broke two ribs during filming from assuming a hunched-over position in his wheelchair for so many weeks.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Makingof_15-0"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_Day-Lewis#cite_note-Makingof-15">[16]</a></sup> </blockquote>Brilliant! Some may call him crazy or eccentric, I call him dedicated and amazing. He gets even more interesting:<br />
<blockquote>Day-Lewis returned to the stage in 1989 to work with <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Eyre" title="Richard Eyre">Richard Eyre</a>, in <i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hamlet" title="Hamlet">Hamlet</a></i> at the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_National_Theatre" title="Royal National Theatre">National Theatre</a>, but collapsed in the middle of a scene where the ghost of Hamlet's father first appears to his son.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-OnlineBio_3-9"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_Day-Lewis#cite_note-OnlineBio-3">[4]</a></sup> He began sobbing uncontrollably and refused to go back on stage;<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-strange_16-0"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_Day-Lewis#cite_note-strange-16">[17]</a></sup> he was replaced by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ian_Charleson" title="Ian Charleson">Ian Charleson</a> before a then-unknown <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeremy_Northam" title="Jeremy Northam">Jeremy Northam</a> finished what little was left of the production's run. One rumour following the incident was that Day-Lewis had seen the ghost of his own father, although the incident was officially attributed to exhaustion.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-OnlineBio_3-10"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_Day-Lewis#cite_note-OnlineBio-3">[4]</a></sup><sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-timeout_6-1"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_Day-Lewis#cite_note-timeout-6">[7]</a></sup> He confirmed on the British celebrity chat show <i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parkinson_%28TV_series%29" title="Parkinson (TV series)">Parkinson</a></i>, that this rumour was true.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-episode_17-0"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_Day-Lewis#cite_note-episode-17">[18]</a></sup> He has not appeared on stage since.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-episode_17-1"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_Day-Lewis#cite_note-episode-17">[18]</a></sup></blockquote>I think that would keep me off stage also. It seems that for every role he chooses, he goes all out to actually become the subject. <br />
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For Last of the Mohicans:<br />
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<blockquote>In 1992, three years after his Oscar win, <i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Last_of_the_Mohicans_%281992_film%29" title="The Last of the Mohicans (1992 film)">The Last of the Mohicans</a></i> was released. Day-Lewis's character research for this film was well-publicized; he reportedly underwent rigorous weight training and learned to live off the land and forest where his character lived, camping, hunting and fishing.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-OnlineBio_3-11"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_Day-Lewis#cite_note-OnlineBio-3">[4]</a></sup> He even carried a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Long_rifle" title="Long rifle">long rifle</a> at all times during filming in order to remain in character and learned how to skin animals.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-OnlineBio_3-12"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_Day-Lewis#cite_note-OnlineBio-3">[4]</a></sup><sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-tcm_18-0"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_Day-Lewis#cite_note-tcm-18">[19]</a></sup> </blockquote>For In the Name of the Father: <br />
<blockquote> He returned to work with Jim Sheridan on <i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/In_the_Name_of_the_Father_%28film%29" title="In the Name of the Father (film)">In the Name of the Father</a></i>, in which he played <a class="mw-redirect" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gerry_Conlon" title="Gerry Conlon">Gerry Conlon</a>, one of the <a class="mw-redirect" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guildford_Four" title="Guildford Four">Guildford Four</a> who were wrongfully convicted of a bombing carried out by the <a class="mw-redirect" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Provisional_IRA" title="Provisional IRA">Provisional IRA</a>. He lost a substantial amount of weight for the part, kept his Northern Irish accent on and off the set for the entire shooting schedule, and spent stretches of time in a prison cell.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-tcm_18-1"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_Day-Lewis#cite_note-tcm-18">[19]</a></sup> He also insisted that crew members throw cold water at him and verbally abuse him.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-tcm_18-2"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_Day-Lewis#cite_note-tcm-18">[19]</a></sup> The film earned him his second Academy Award nomination, his third BAFTA nomination, and his second Golden Globe nomination.</blockquote>For Gangs of New York:<br />
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<blockquote>After a five-year absence from filming, Day-Lewis returned to act in multiple <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Academy_Award" title="Academy Award">Academy Award</a>-nominated films such as <i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gangs_of_New_York" title="Gangs of New York">Gangs of New York</a></i>, a film directed by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martin_Scorsese" title="Martin Scorsese">Martin Scorsese</a> (with whom he had worked on <i>The Age of Innocence</i>) and produced by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harvey_Weinstein" title="Harvey Weinstein">Harvey Weinstein</a>. In his role as the villain gang leader "Bill the Butcher", he starred along with <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leonardo_DiCaprio" title="Leonardo DiCaprio">Leonardo DiCaprio</a>, who played Bill's young protegé. He began his lengthy, self-disciplined process by taking lessons as an apprentice butcher, and while filming, he was never out of character between takes (including keeping his character's New York accent).<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-OnlineBio_3-14"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_Day-Lewis#cite_note-OnlineBio-3">[4]</a></sup> At one point during filming, having been diagnosed with <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pneumonia" title="Pneumonia">pneumonia</a>, he refused to wear a warmer coat or to take treatment because it was not in keeping with the period; however, he was eventually persuaded to seek medical treatment.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-22"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_Day-Lewis#cite_note-22">[23]</a></sup> His performance in <i>Gangs of New York</i> earned him his third Academy Award nomination and won him the <a class="mw-redirect" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BAFTA_Award_for_Best_Actor" title="BAFTA Award for Best Actor">BAFTA Award for Best Actor</a>.</blockquote>Which leads me to the part where I was reading about his portrayal of Daniel Plainview in There Will Be Blood.<br />
<blockquote>In 2007, Day-Lewis appeared in director <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Thomas_Anderson" title="Paul Thomas Anderson">Paul Thomas Anderson</a>'s loose adaptation of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Upton_Sinclair" title="Upton Sinclair">Upton Sinclair</a> novel <i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oil%21" title="Oil!">Oil!</a></i>, titled <i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/There_Will_Be_Blood" title="There Will Be Blood">There Will Be Blood</a></i>.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Variety_24-0"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_Day-Lewis#cite_note-Variety-24">[25]</a></sup> Day-Lewis received the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Academy_Award_for_Best_Actor" title="Academy Award for Best Actor">Academy Award for Best Actor</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BAFTA_Award_for_Best_Actor_in_a_Leading_Role" title="BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role">BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role</a>, <a class="mw-redirect" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_Globe_Award_for_Best_Actor_-_Motion_Picture_Drama" title="Golden Globe Award for Best Actor - Motion Picture Drama">Golden Globe Award for Best Actor - Motion Picture Drama</a>, <a class="mw-redirect" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Screen_Actors_Guild_Award_for_Outstanding_Performance_by_a_Male_Actor_in_a_Leading_Role_-_Motion_Picture" title="Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role - Motion Picture">Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role - Motion Picture</a> (which he dedicated to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heath_Ledger" title="Heath Ledger">Heath Ledger</a>, saying that he was inspired by Ledger's acting and calling the actor's performance in <i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brokeback_Mountain" title="Brokeback Mountain">Brokeback Mountain</a></i> "unique, perfect."<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-25"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_Day-Lewis#cite_note-25">[26]</a></sup><sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-26"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_Day-Lewis#cite_note-26">[27]</a></sup>) and a variety of film critics circle awards for the role. </blockquote>From there, I went to see if youtube had the video of his award win, and it did. I watched it, and was amazed at how humble and gracious the man is.<br />
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<object height="385" width="480"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/xxr8mbvaB2E?fs=1&hl=en_GB"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/xxr8mbvaB2E?fs=1&hl=en_GB" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object><br />
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Truly one of the greatest actors of our time, if not the greatest period. Check out his filmography, and next to most films there is a long long list of awards or nominations.<br />
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The last picture he was in was Nine, a Rob Marshall film. I can't find anything on what he may be working on now, but if his past is any indication, it will be another couple years before we see another. I can wait. <br />
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Who do you guys think is the greatest actor of our time and/or, who is your favourite?njohnfixeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09990372780512492092noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5015029956900585852.post-2571686049558461212010-11-11T14:57:00.000-08:002010-11-11T14:57:57.248-08:00Lest We Forget<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TNx0086HY7I/AAAAAAAAAMU/n-nN03I6Nac/s1600/lest-we-forget.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="168" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TNx0086HY7I/AAAAAAAAAMU/n-nN03I6Nac/s320/lest-we-forget.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
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Today we remember those who paid so bravely the ultimate price for our rights and freedoms. Lest we forget their courage, sacrifice and honour. Today, take a moment and think about everything we have, and of those who fought so that it could be.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TNx02cMXG4I/AAAAAAAAAMY/eol4z9pGpGs/s1600/Flander_website.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TNx02cMXG4I/AAAAAAAAAMY/eol4z9pGpGs/s1600/Flander_website.jpg" /></a></div>njohnfixeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09990372780512492092noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5015029956900585852.post-22673352863037049362010-11-08T21:54:00.000-08:002010-11-08T21:54:30.581-08:00School's In<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TNjgUZPEYDI/AAAAAAAAALo/UdJwEQ6XV_g/s1600/IMG_0324.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TNjgUZPEYDI/AAAAAAAAALo/UdJwEQ6XV_g/s320/IMG_0324.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
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I made it up here okay on Sunday. I left home at about 12:30, made 2 stops along the way to get a coffee for the drive, and was at my friends place around 4:45. Not a bad haul considering the stops along the way. Traffic was almost nothing after I left the Lower Mainland and the mountain highway weather co-operated nicely, considering this is getting to be the time of year when the Coquihalla can become buried in feet of snow and shut down. It's comin, though. Looking forward to the drive home in 6 weeks.<br />
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Today was our first day in class. Mostly a set up day, get to know the other 15 guys in the class, go over safety, rules, books, course vectoring etc. That took up the first half of the class, and at lunch I went to the bookstore and grabbed the texts I needed that I didn't already have. $245 later, we went over what I was talking about before on basic electrical (atoms, electrons, neutrons, circuits etc) to refresh. The instructor we have is great, extremely knowledgeable, and personable. I had him for my level 2 class.We began the class with 2 tests; one on stuff we've already learned in previous years to see how well we're remembering that, and one on a myriad of electrical concepts to see how much we need to learn. I pass both, most people (so far as the mood seemed) didn't.<br />
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We were off at 3:30, and when I got back to home base I did my homework. 51 pages of reading plus 45 questions. No rest for the wicked, I guess. I try to do the reading and homework as soon as I get home, to keep what we did in class fresh in the mind and help hammer home the formulas and theory.<br />
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How do you guys study while at school? Any tips? What works for you? I'll end with a few pics from the drive. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TNjgXOmNN3I/AAAAAAAAALs/buyLdC2fR6s/s1600/IMG_0326.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TNjgXOmNN3I/AAAAAAAAALs/buyLdC2fR6s/s320/IMG_0326.JPG" width="240" /></a></div> Leaving Chilliwack.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TNjggoK9ZCI/AAAAAAAAAL4/smCFUS3rvaI/s1600/IMG_0332.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TNjggoK9ZCI/AAAAAAAAAL4/smCFUS3rvaI/s320/IMG_0332.JPG" width="240" /></a></div> Just outside of Hope.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TNjgnwxnllI/AAAAAAAAAL8/SarjL0nrpjw/s1600/IMG_0333.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TNjgnwxnllI/AAAAAAAAAL8/SarjL0nrpjw/s320/IMG_0333.JPG" width="240" /></a></div> Oh good, the highway is open.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TNjgrYraU8I/AAAAAAAAAMA/UkXS_DY1IRw/s1600/IMG_0335.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TNjgrYraU8I/AAAAAAAAAMA/UkXS_DY1IRw/s320/IMG_0335.JPG" width="240" /></a></div> On the Coquihalla.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TNjgxgWUNBI/AAAAAAAAAMI/1VzoGl4rlHQ/s1600/IMG_0340.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TNjgxgWUNBI/AAAAAAAAAMI/1VzoGl4rlHQ/s320/IMG_0340.JPG" width="240" /></a></div> Just outside of Merritt.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TNjg0QEwboI/AAAAAAAAAMM/qL-MZ8ASJig/s1600/IMG_0341.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TNjg0QEwboI/AAAAAAAAAMM/qL-MZ8ASJig/s320/IMG_0341.JPG" width="240" /></a></div> Entering Kamloops.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TNjg2Kio2NI/AAAAAAAAAMQ/SFWWKi8Hc7g/s1600/IMG_0342.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TNjg2Kio2NI/AAAAAAAAAMQ/SFWWKi8Hc7g/s320/IMG_0342.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>Success! In Kamloops.njohnfixeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09990372780512492092noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5015029956900585852.post-10418156516645663362010-11-05T16:51:00.000-07:002010-11-05T16:51:56.095-07:00'127 Hours' Causes Fainting, Vomiting, Seizures<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TNSXl-bPByI/AAAAAAAAALk/Jsmot5snmTY/s1600/127-Hours-Movie.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TNSXl-bPByI/AAAAAAAAALk/Jsmot5snmTY/s320/127-Hours-Movie.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
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Sounds like my kind of movie...<br />
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Danny Boyle's new film about rock climber Aron Ralston, the fellow who had to amputate his own arm after being trapped by a boulder, seems to be causing people some ah, issues, shall we say.<br />
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From MovieLine.com:<br />
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<blockquote>The official word from Fox Searchlight is “No” — the epidemic of fainting, seizures and other visceral physical reactions to the amputation scene in <i>127 Hours</i> is not a studio-engineered publicity stunt. Nor does the studio intend to capitalize on it, <a href="http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/news/movies/la-et-arm-movie-20101031,0,6284653.story" target="blank">according to co-president Stephen Gilula</a>: “I would prefer that people not pass out; it’s not a plus. […] We don’t see a particular publicity value in it.” Noble? Sure. Tasteful? Always. Honest? Let’s check the medical history.<br />
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<b>Sept. 4 — Telluride Film Festival</b><br />
<a href="http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/movies/2010/09/telluride-2010-danny-boyles-127-hours-storms-into-town.html">Two</a> separate <a href="http://www.hitfix.com/blogs/awards-campaign-2009/posts/telluride-danny-boyles-127-hours-is-a-visceral-and-uplifting-experience">reports</a> had one person fainting at the film’s world premiere, while the <a href="http://blogs.indiewire.com/thompsononhollywood/2010/09/05/telluride_127_hours_marks_two_pass-outs/#">official accounting</a> from Searchlight counted “an older gentleman [who] was light-headed at the first screening” and, at the second screening, a ” young woman (maybe 19 or 20) who had a panic attack. Paramedics attended to both people.” Anne Thompson’s fest correspondent Meredith Brody <a href="http://blogs.indiewire.com/thompsononhollywood/2010/09/05/telluride_127_hours_marks_two_pass-outs/#">said</a> she was reminded “of the old days when people were vomiting in the lobby during <i>The Exorcist</i>.” <br />
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<b>Sept. 13 — Toronto Film Festival</b><br />
“The first public screening of Danny Boyle’s <i>127 Hours</i> had three faintings and one seizure,” <a href="http://www.thewrap.com/movies/column-post/127-hours-casualty-count-tiff-3-faintings-1-seizure-20808">wrote Wrap contributor John Foote</a>. According to a fest volunteer, the audience at the Sept. 14 screening “was made of sterner stuff than those from yesterday” — this despite Foote noting, “I cannot remember a reaction to a film like this in a very long time, perhaps not since <i>The Exorcist</i> sent audiences scurrying for the doors (though much of that was later said to be a publicity stunt).” You don’t say.<br />
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<b>Oct. 15 — Private screening, Pixar Theater</b><br />
Nikki Finke <a href="http://www.deadline.com/2010/10/dial-911-for-127-hours-screenings/">reported</a> that two people passed out during a screening hosted by <i>Toy Story 3</i> director Lee Unkrich. Both were “declared fine” by paramedics. One of Finke’s commenters put the fainting tally at four — “and these are people who work on movies!” <br />
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<b>Oct. 16 — Mill Valley Film Festival</b><br />
According to a <a href="http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/news/movies/la-et-arm-movie-20101031,0,6284653.story">report last weekend</a> by John Horn in the <i><span class="caps">LAT</span></i>, one viewer fainted during <i>127 Hours</i>’ <a href="http://mvff2010.inticketing.com/filmlist.php"><span class="caps">MVFF </span>premiere</a>. (No individual reports from the scene corroborate this.) “Such fainting spells aren’t unprecedented in Hollywood, though they’ve been much more commonly caused by horror movies like <i>The Exorcist</i> and <i>Alien</i>,” Horn added.<br />
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<b>Oct. 19 — Special screening, Museum of Modern Art</b><br />
<i>Vanity Fair</i> editor Graydon Carter hosted director Danny Boyle, actor James Franco and climber Aron Ralston for a <span class="caps">Q&A, </span>prior to which <a href="http://www.nypost.com/p/pagesix/hard_to_watch_wlLfbiolOhJo1FfcpyDRFO">one viewer reportedly fainted</a>.<br />
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<b>Oct. 23 — Private Producers Guild screening, Hollywood</b><br />
Also cited by Horn, who spoke with a woman who was treated by paramedics who’d originally been called to tend to a viewer’s seizure. “I have never had, even remotely, an experience like this,” the woman told Horn. <span class="pullquote">“I’m a television producer. I know this stuff is not real.”</span> Another flummoxed Hollywood pro! Just like the people at Pixar! Sounds like <i>someone</i>’s bulking up for Academy consideration. Meanwhile, a Page Six commenter <a href="http://www.nypost.com/p/pagesix/hard_to_watch_wlLfbiolOhJo1FfcpyDRFO">put the total tally</a> of affected viewers at the screening as high as three.<br />
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<b>Unknown date — Research screening, Huntington Beach</b> <br />
One fainting, according to Horn, although “the studio and test screening company Screen Engine said that the […] casualty returned to the theater to give the movie a grade of ‘excellent’”<br />
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<b>Oct. 28 — London Film Festival</b><br />
A <a href="http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/showbiz/film/3202396/The-biggest-grossing-film.html">report in <i>The Sun</i></a> claimed that “[h]orrified film fans threw up and fainted at the premiere of <i>Slumdog Millionaire</i> director Danny Boyle’s shocking new movie,” which closed the London Film Festival last week. The bad news: As you might expect from <i>The Sun</i>, the specific number and nature of the cases was not determined. There is this, though: “Boyle looked on as paramedics treated fans struggling to cope with gruesome scenes.” And the person <a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-1324706/Danny-Boyles-127-Hours-premieres-London-Film-Festival.html">sitting near <i>Daily Mail</i> reviewer Chris Tookey</a> “left just after the most gruesome bit and never came back,” apparently rebuking “the most harrowing bone-breaking and amputation scene in the history of cinema.”<br />
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<b>Nov. 3 — Los Angeles premiere</b><br />
A female filmgoer suffered a seizure relatively early during the film — well before Franco’s character amputates his arm with a dull penknife. Paramedics arrived and, in fact, the movie continued screening through the event. <a href="http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/movies/2010/11/127-hours-premiere-another-call-paramedics.html">Per the <i><span class="caps">LAT</span></i>’s Steven Zeitchik</a>:<br />
<blockquote>At the screening’s conclusion, director Danny Boyle rose and said the incident was the result of a diabetic condition, and that it was the first time the woman, who appeared to be in her 20s, had had such an episode since she was 5 years old. Boyle assured the audience that she had been taken to Cedars-Sinai medical center and was doing well, adding that “she said it had nothing to do with the movie.” A Fox Searchlight executive later echoed that account.</blockquote></blockquote>njohnfixeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09990372780512492092noreply@blogger.com17tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5015029956900585852.post-52002496832334379062010-11-05T08:39:00.000-07:002010-11-05T08:39:31.440-07:00Anyone Willing To Buy This For Me?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TNQk8gVaM8I/AAAAAAAAALg/mXW9C_OY9S8/s1600/fossilized-dino-dung.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TNQk8gVaM8I/AAAAAAAAALg/mXW9C_OY9S8/s320/fossilized-dino-dung.jpg" width="250" /></a></div><br />
I would really like to own this. Damn my not living in the US. <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Toysmith-Fossilized-Dino-Poop/dp/B0026MO5WO">Real Fossilized Dino Poop</a>njohnfixeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09990372780512492092noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5015029956900585852.post-51938950410492449612010-11-05T08:17:00.000-07:002010-11-05T08:17:32.745-07:00Foto Friday<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TNQfSbG6gzI/AAAAAAAAAK8/UGpktyw827c/s1600/1247788139015.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TNQfSbG6gzI/AAAAAAAAAK8/UGpktyw827c/s320/1247788139015.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Let's make it a tradition that every Friday my post will be a small amount of chatter with more pics. Because who wants to work/think on a Friday? That's right, lots of people. But I'm not one of them.<br />
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I had to go by the place that laid me off today to pick up my steel toed boots and some books I had in my toolbox that I'll need for school. I asked how everything was going, and the general consensus seemed to be "meh, same ole same ole." That's nice to hear. I had sincerely hoped that everything had done a 180 and become insanely the best place to work ever. No such hope. At least they've provided me with a nice spot to park my monster tool box for the time being, for that I can be grateful.<br />
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Pics!<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TNQftX1VdVI/AAAAAAAAALY/_tiVLNyhTtY/s1600/lol.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TNQftX1VdVI/AAAAAAAAALY/_tiVLNyhTtY/s1600/lol.jpg" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TNQfx8S0LAI/AAAAAAAAALc/Z5ikckB9vMo/s1600/enhanced-buzz-18575-1269447080-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TNQfx8S0LAI/AAAAAAAAALc/Z5ikckB9vMo/s320/enhanced-buzz-18575-1269447080-1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>njohnfixeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09990372780512492092noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5015029956900585852.post-38488815044585199982010-11-03T09:26:00.000-07:002010-11-03T09:26:09.360-07:005 More Days<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TNGMj1VHpuI/AAAAAAAAAK0/-jLytLYqH90/s1600/Breaking-Bad-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TNGMj1VHpuI/AAAAAAAAAK0/-jLytLYqH90/s320/Breaking-Bad-1.jpg" width="278" /></a></div><br />
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Morning folks. So it's only 5 more days for me before I pack up some things and head up into the interior of BC for school. I'm very excited about it, probably more than normal since I've been at home since September. It's about a 4 hour drive from where I live, and I stay with a friend of mine who gives up a room for me to squat in while I'm there. <br />
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It's awesome because I can concentrate on my work and study a lot without too many outside distractions. There are a few of course, but I mainly stay on track. It's a little different this time around for me personally; the last two times I went up there for school I had my employer paying for it and giving me my wage. This time it's all on me. I guess there's a bit more incentive this year to do really well then? Make the most out of the money? Luckily the government should be helping me out with support payments, due to the economic situation, moving away from home, paying tuition etc. That'll halp.<br />
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I finished season 2 of Breaking Bad yesterday. I'm liking this show a lot. Anyone else watch it? What shows can you recommend for me after I'm done this one? <br />
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Also, The Walking Dead was awesome. Looking VERY forward to the rest of this series. Loved the first episode.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TNGNEBcH4qI/AAAAAAAAAK4/qXX8e3FXD8E/s1600/girlzombie.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="171" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TNGNEBcH4qI/AAAAAAAAAK4/qXX8e3FXD8E/s320/girlzombie.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>njohnfixeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09990372780512492092noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5015029956900585852.post-50791910686996145912010-11-02T08:43:00.000-07:002010-11-02T08:43:32.518-07:00The PicsHere are our costumes from Halloween. We ended up going over to a friends house with our other friend kmad. He was dressed as a grunge character, we dubbed him Chris Cornell. He spent the night being sad and angsty about most things, including the rain, as it tortured his soul.<br />
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This is me. I was a dead. Basically re-used the costume from last year to get more legs out of it. Suit was a prime find at the Salvation Army. $12! We made it into a tux type deal. Wife did the make-up, I did the blood. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TNAxLfRi96I/AAAAAAAAAKs/KwM3nxqrZFU/s1600/67294_10150289532185230_782165229_15635070_7066531_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TNAxLfRi96I/AAAAAAAAAKs/KwM3nxqrZFU/s320/67294_10150289532185230_782165229_15635070_7066531_n.jpg" width="240" /></a></div> While we were walking downtown to a bus stop, I was stopped a few times for pictures with people who didn't speak english. Cool!<br />
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Wife went as Cleopatra. Her dress looked great (a recycle from last year also, minus the amounts of blood) and her makeup was great.<br />
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Had a fun time this year, hope to maybe get to zomBcon next year :)<br />
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What's the best costume you guys saw this year?njohnfixeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09990372780512492092noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5015029956900585852.post-37160562927028515652010-10-31T14:49:00.000-07:002010-10-31T14:50:31.326-07:00Happy Halloween!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TM3kpKL0LiI/AAAAAAAAAKo/gsmNTeUZACQ/s1600/halloween_pumpkin.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="284" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TM3kpKL0LiI/AAAAAAAAAKo/gsmNTeUZACQ/s320/halloween_pumpkin.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
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Happy Halloween, dear readers! Hope your night was fun and safe, and if you waited until today to do something, I hope the same for today. What did everyone do themselves up as?njohnfixeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09990372780512492092noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5015029956900585852.post-79896853842010884672010-10-29T09:14:00.000-07:002010-10-29T09:14:59.573-07:00Rant, Then Pictures!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TMry7LCXp4I/AAAAAAAAAKQ/f4BRjdzH9LU/s1600/images.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TMry7LCXp4I/AAAAAAAAAKQ/f4BRjdzH9LU/s1600/images.jpg" /></a></div><br />
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I'm very glad I'll be leaving for school in just over a week, and not have to think about looking for a job right now. Even more glad that on the back end of school I'll be more desirable to employ. Lately I've been getting very annoyed however, and it goes back to what I was talking about before. <br />
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Even though I'm not actively searching out a position right now, I still browse craigslist and Canada Job Bank daily to see what's being posted, in case I miss any possible opportunities. Well, there are 2 companies who continue to pop up in these ads. One of them is a company I had an interview at. They never got back to me to say why I didn't get the job, but the general feeling (based on a comment by the man I was interviewing with) was that it was because I was still a mid level apprentice. What grinds my gears though, is that they still continue to post for a position there, and the ad states that they want someone with 2 years to less than 3 years experience. How is it possible to have a journeyman with 2 years to less than 3 years experience? I have 5 years experience so far. Aggravating, to say the least. I feel like applying there when I'm done school, then ignoring them. Immature? Yes. Pics!<br />
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These are a couple of the shots I got while we were at the Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle.<br />
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He is their favourite guy. You can see it in their faces.<br />
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Snow leopard cub, can't remember how old they were, but this one was hunting his sibling who had the soccer ball.<br />
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Bengal Tiger. <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TMryXsoXTEI/AAAAAAAAAKM/75lSk_Fz1KQ/s1600/IMG_7084.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TMryXsoXTEI/AAAAAAAAAKM/75lSk_Fz1KQ/s320/IMG_7084.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>njohnfixeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09990372780512492092noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5015029956900585852.post-32974661629486521082010-10-28T09:29:00.000-07:002010-10-28T09:29:41.392-07:00The Mouthwash Incident<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TMmkj_tCeVI/AAAAAAAAAKA/MB3EhdgFcrU/s1600/British-Simpsons-Tea-Spit.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TMmkj_tCeVI/AAAAAAAAAKA/MB3EhdgFcrU/s1600/British-Simpsons-Tea-Spit.jpg" /></a></div><br />
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The other night, my wife and I were enjoying a nice bottle of cheap wine and chatting. As it grew late, and the wine disappeared, my wife decided to use my mouthwash before bed. I keep it on the top shelf in the bathroom (no real reason, it just fits up there) and she couldn't reach it. I went it to take it down for her, and watched in horror as she popped the cap off and swigged right from the bottle.<br />
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I screamed in horror "YOU FREE POUR MOUTHWASH? You can't do that! You have to measure it!" This was probably not the best thing to exclaim to somebody with a mouth full of liquid, in fact, you should never exclaim anything at anyone with a mouthfull of liquid. Let's make that a rule. Anyway, she started to giggle as she swished it around in her mouth. I decided it was best if I left the area, partly to decompress the humour of the situation but also to protect myself. But I had to at least hang around. After a few seconds, her laughter slowed and ceased. We were in the clear.<br />
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Or so I thought.<br />
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About 5 seconds after stopping laughing, apparently it all came crashing back, because that's exactly what the mouthwash did; all over my shelf, clean toilet, and finally floor. She busted out laughing, asking me what the hell free pouring mouthwash is exactly. I explained to her that the cap has marks inside it to accurately measure out how much you should have in your mouth, and that it's irresponsible to just ignore it and go right from the bottle. Well she couldn't stop laughing, and I couldn't seem to get my point across.<br />
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So I put it to you, fellow bloggies. Do you measure out in the cap, or do you chug from the bottle? Side question, do you count to 30 in your head and then spit, or just free time it?njohnfixeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09990372780512492092noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5015029956900585852.post-65333435318063489792010-10-27T09:33:00.000-07:002010-10-27T09:33:51.471-07:00Fun Days Ahead<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TMhS8Vlh5fI/AAAAAAAAAJw/6_8ZfrBjtWE/s1600/book2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TMhS8Vlh5fI/AAAAAAAAAJw/6_8ZfrBjtWE/s320/book2.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>Good Morning everyone. I apologize for the lack of posting lately. I've been fairly busy lately prepping for school (now only a week and a half away, wee) and taking care of some things around the homestead. Hope I didn't miss too much.<br />
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So it's Halloween in a few days. I love this time of year. We all get to indulge a little and go back to our youths and play dress up, eat poorly, and drink up a storm! Enough about my toddler years, though. Halloween had a revival for me in the last couple years. I didn't really do a whole lot for it for a long time, but last year brought me back. Last year Halloween fell on a Saturday which was perfect, and playing in Vancouver at that time was Evil Dead: The Musical. We managed to get tickets for the early show Halloween night, great seats in what was called "the splatter zone." This was an area of about the first 5 rows, where during a blood bath ending to the play itself, blood was sprayed at the audience from the stage, from jets above the stage, and from the actors walking out into the crowd down the aisles. The amount of blood sprayed on the crowd apparently was in the range of about 15 gallons or so per show. Wife and I went dressed up as an unfortunate bride and groom who'd had a bit of a falling out on our honeymoon, ending with me with a screwdriver in my head, and her with gaping neck wounds. We did ourselves up very well, knowing that by the end of the show, our costumes would be 100x better.<br />
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Here is where we were sitting, after the show.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TMhS_Y1kvoI/AAAAAAAAAJ8/aLy-eV_lndA/s1600/kiss.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TMhS_Y1kvoI/AAAAAAAAAJ8/aLy-eV_lndA/s320/kiss.jpg" width="240" /></a></div> And our completed costumes. As you can see, both our laps got quite a drenching. I actually turned my face upward at one point! Totally awesome.<br />
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The show itself was hilarious, we loved it. I would have seen it again if I could. If it's in your area, I highly suggest checking it out. It's a great time. For a list of upcoming shows, check out their website:<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.evildeadthemusical.com/site/">http://www.evildeadthemusical.com/site/</a> </div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Since the show was downtown, we basically just left the theatre and joined the party. Next door to the theatre was a pub, so we went in there and had a few drinks and mingled with other halloween partyers. Then we went outside and just kinda walked around. There were hundreds of people downtown that night on Granville, and the costumes walking around were fantastic. We had our picture taken about a hundred times with people who loved our getup. Great fun. This year won't come close, but we're gonna try!</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div>njohnfixeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09990372780512492092noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5015029956900585852.post-42169943485013906892010-10-23T13:28:00.000-07:002010-10-23T13:28:14.271-07:00Picture Post!<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TMNE_k2C8vI/AAAAAAAAAJc/wouE-PLxlqI/s1600/thumbs-up.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TMNE_k2C8vI/AAAAAAAAAJc/wouE-PLxlqI/s1600/thumbs-up.jpg" /></a><br />
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It's a lazy Saturday afternoon, and after last night's hockey game (both watching the Canucks and then playing in my own) I am much too tired to come up with anything interesting to talk about, especially after yesterdays brain breaker. So here are some random pictures for you guys. Enjoy.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TMNFAA8cOMI/AAAAAAAAAJg/FQwMIH_LeXc/s1600/tomgreenhaha2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TMNFAA8cOMI/AAAAAAAAAJg/FQwMIH_LeXc/s1600/tomgreenhaha2.jpg" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TMNFAhnbhDI/AAAAAAAAAJk/kgI9srC1t9U/s1600/untitled.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TMNFAhnbhDI/AAAAAAAAAJk/kgI9srC1t9U/s320/untitled.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TMNFAztpv2I/AAAAAAAAAJo/KouDYUyDR58/s1600/xdrquinnx.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TMNFAztpv2I/AAAAAAAAAJo/KouDYUyDR58/s320/xdrquinnx.jpg" width="253" /></a></div>njohnfixeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09990372780512492092noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5015029956900585852.post-84970793289590673322010-10-22T09:39:00.000-07:002010-10-22T09:39:11.482-07:00Zzzzzap<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TMG8QnsOsOI/AAAAAAAAAJA/FtbOpA6uQqg/s1600/Electrocuted.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TMG8QnsOsOI/AAAAAAAAAJA/FtbOpA6uQqg/s320/Electrocuted.gif" width="295" /></a></div><br />
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So lately I've been taking some time during the day to open up the books and get a bit of a head start for school coming up. A few of the textbooks we require can be used in different levels, which is great. For instance, a couple of our large textbooks cover all kinds of material, so we can use them each time we attend. Some of the smaller, more narrowed down content books we still need to buy, but that's not so bad.<br />
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For Year 3 Heavy Duty Mechanics, the subject is Electricity, Carburetor Fuel Systems & Diesel Fuel Systems (Mechanical & Electronic). I'm still not sure why we still cover carburetors, it's pretty antiquated technology. Year 3 is supposedly the hardest of all the 4 levels we have, since it's based mostly on electrical theory. A lot of people struggle with it. I have a pretty good base of understanding of it through work and dabbling a bit in other classes. So far I've been studying the math behind Series, Parallel, and Series-Parallel circuits, which is basically finding Volts, Amps, Ohms and Watts based on diagrams. Back to grade 8 math, really.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TMG17CYB5MI/AAAAAAAAAI0/bLsTk3JZo9s/s1600/Ohmslaw.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="318" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TMG17CYB5MI/AAAAAAAAAI0/bLsTk3JZo9s/s320/Ohmslaw.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
There's the formula wheel for what I've been studying. W is for Watts, I is Inductance (Amps), R is Resistance (Ohms) and E is Electromotive Force (Volts). I've been making up a lot of circuits and going through the math to get my head wrapped around it. There's a formula you can use called the Voltage Divider Rule, which allows you to solve for voltage across one or combination of series resistors without first having to solve for the amps. It goes:<br />
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</div><div style="text-align: center;">(R<span style="font-size: xx-small;">1 x <span style="font-size: small;">E) / (R<span style="font-size: xx-small;">1 + <span style="font-size: small;">R<span style="font-size: xx-small;">2 + <span style="font-size: small;">R<span style="font-size: xx-small;">3 etc.<span style="font-size: small;">) = V<span style="font-size: xx-small;">1</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">It's fairly simple really. If you're like me and you never do math outside of shopping or cooking and baking, then it's gotta be worked into the brain before I can remember it fully. </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TMG44ty3wWI/AAAAAAAAAI8/F36jnFP4az0/s1600/circuit1.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TMG44ty3wWI/AAAAAAAAAI8/F36jnFP4az0/s1600/circuit1.png" /></a></div><br />
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So for this particular circuit, looking for the voltage drop across R<span style="font-size: xx-small;">1<span style="font-size: small;">, the forumla would read:</span></span><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">(3</span></span>Ω x 12v) / (3Ω + 5Ω + 4Ω) = V<span style="font-size: xx-small;">1</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">Which would then work out to read:</span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">36/12 = 3volts.</span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">So, the voltage drop across R<span style="font-size: xx-small;">1 <span style="font-size: small;">is 3 volts. The next formula would read:</span></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></span> </span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">(5</span></span>Ω x 12v) / (3Ω + 5Ω + 4Ω) = V<span style="font-size: xx-small;">2</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">60/12 = 5volts.</span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">Voltage drop across R<span style="font-size: xx-small;">2 <span style="font-size: small;">is 5 volts. The next formula would read:</span></span> </span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: small;"> (4</span></span>Ω x 12v) / (3Ω + 5Ω + 4Ω) = V<span style="font-size: xx-small;">3</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">48/12 = 4 volts.</span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">I just happened to pick numbers that work out to 12 for the resistance, so it worked out fairly easily. I've been entering all kinds of numbers in my practice to make sure I don't take it too lightly.</span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">So, since in a series circuit, the sum of all resistors equals the total resistance (R<span style="font-size: xx-small;">T<span style="font-size: small;">), we can now figure out what the amperage is. In a series circuit, current through each resistor is the same. So the formula goes:</span></span></span></span><br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">V<span style="font-size: xx-small;">T <span style="font-size: small;">/ R<span style="font-size: xx-small;">T <span style="font-size: small;">= A<span style="font-size: xx-small;">T</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">12/12 = 1amp.</span> </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">Isn't that fun?</span> </span></span></span></span></span> </span></span></span></span></div><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
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</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div>njohnfixeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09990372780512492092noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5015029956900585852.post-77392303059886919342010-10-20T09:09:00.000-07:002010-10-20T09:09:47.979-07:00Vancouver's Turn For A Bad NightWhat looked like a promising start for the Vancouver Canucks less than a minute into the game thanks to Daniel Sedins goal turned ugly fast as they went on to give up the next 6, and lost 6-2. What was worse than the score wasn't only the porous defence, a really bad game in goal by Luongo, and no finish by the forwards, but an altercation with a fan by Canucks centre and enforcer Rick Rypien.<br />
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Rypien was being led off the ice after a 2nd fight (2nd wasn't really a fight, more of a scrum where Rypien threw a punch after being held back by linesmen) and while leaving the ice, lunged and pushed a fan who was at the railing of the dressing room tunnel. No one is yet sure why he did it, but teammate Manny Malhotra is quoted as saying "I just think the fan got a little bit too involved," Malhotra said. "There's just no place for that in our game. "There's boundaries that should never be crossed. We're in our area of work. We are all for the hootin' and hollerin' and supporting your team and saying whatever is tasteful out there. But as soon as you cross that line and want to become physical with a player, we have to make sure we take care of ourselves and we're protected."<br />
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I can't see where the fan did anything at all to provoke the attack. He was leaning a little bit and applauding (no doubt with tongue in cheek), probably jawing something, but this should never happen.<br />
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League will most likely rule today on if there will be a suspension and how long/how much that will be.njohnfixeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09990372780512492092noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5015029956900585852.post-46122680211273568532010-10-19T09:13:00.000-07:002010-10-19T09:13:04.461-07:00The Wire<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TL3CRZjwYdI/AAAAAAAAAIw/bHOGuKz0MnU/s1600/the-wire.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TL3CRZjwYdI/AAAAAAAAAIw/bHOGuKz0MnU/s320/the-wire.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
So since I've been laid off I've been watching this show. I've been crazy about a number of HBO shows (The Sopranos, Deadwood, Six Feet Under, Carnivale) and my buddy kmad said I should check this one out. Even stated it might even be better than The Sopranos. That's a bold statement for me, since I consider The Sopranos one of the best of all time. Consistently though, I've heard good things about the Wire.<br />
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The first season was pretty good. Not amazing, but interesting, and kept me watching. The 2nd season for me was great. Very interesting. I like the crime they come up with, and all the organization that goes behind it. I find that fascinating. To me, season 2 was where it picked up big time. Then season 3 came along, and it was mostly politics with a shitload of new characters. I was curious as to why I suddenly cared about all these new people. It kind of went from a nice tidy season 2 to all over the damn place. It wasn't as good to me.<br />
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I stuck with it though, I'm not about to give up on it just because of a lame season. So I'm halfway through season 4, and suddenly all of those boring characters from season 3 are lighting it up. Even Prez is interesting now. <br />
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It's a good show, but I don't know if it will supplant The Sopranos or even Deadwood for me, but we'll see. Deadwood was pretty epic. What are your favourite shows?njohnfixeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09990372780512492092noreply@blogger.com17tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5015029956900585852.post-22857102634394957472010-10-18T09:41:00.000-07:002010-10-18T09:41:01.335-07:00Monday MondayLike a great band once said, "Monday monday.... " Yes sirs, lyrics to live by. Anyway, I had a fairly eventful weekend. Friday night hockey was great, had 1 goal, played pretty good. Saturday was the day of my wifes birthday party at our place. We spent most of the day tidying up the place for company and then prepared some finger foods. Had a great time, I hope everyone else did too. Had more beers than I was anticipating but what can ya do.<br />
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The idea was that we were going to have a pumpkin carving contest. As the drinking went on, we felt that wielding little saws and knives was probably not the best thing, so a few of our guests took to decorating one of the pumpkins with a sharpie. I think it turned out rather nice:<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TLx0nAE5qNI/AAAAAAAAAHI/piB6hAFhgAg/s1600/IMG_0315.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TLx0nAE5qNI/AAAAAAAAAHI/piB6hAFhgAg/s320/IMG_0315.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
Amazing! Proud to display. Should keep the kids away on halloween.<br />
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When I drink I like to show people stuff I own that's cool. Here are 2 things I have and treasure that I will share with you.<br />
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This is my Tonka truck. I found this at a Value Village one day. It's in great condition. I had one of these when I was 5-7, and I wore the wheels off running around with it. It's awesome.<br />
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This is my NES Action Set. I found the box with the styro still inside it at the place I was staying with my in-laws. When we moved, I took it. I found the manuals and the game and a couple other things on eBay, and the console is my own from when I was younger. I know the gun doesn't match the box (I have to find a gray one) but I'll find one eventually. This thing makes me nostalgia hard. I love it. <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TLx1YWIiRPI/AAAAAAAAAIo/ogbxtfSyWHw/s1600/IMG_0316.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_-7WFhdF1QS4/TLx1YWIiRPI/AAAAAAAAAIo/ogbxtfSyWHw/s320/IMG_0316.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>njohnfixeshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09990372780512492092noreply@blogger.com11