Hey Jerk!

After yesterday's Padre game at the beautiful Petco Park we went off into the Gaslamp district which is a much more entertainment filled and safer Pioneer Square. Walking down the strip I heard 3 live jazz bands, some 30's band orchestra, a funk band covering Montell Jordan, and we stopped at Dick's Last Resort where they were doing Prince, Cure, and unfortunately Bryan Adams covers. I guess summer of '69 is ok. I'm sure Jim would have loved it since the main theme of Dick's in SD is to be a complete asshole to you. We bought large Bud Lights 40's and smoked outside where the waitress throwing plastic cups at people. When i asked the bartender for a light she glared at me and yelled, "There's a bucket of titty matches right next to you jerk!" I was in awe at the standardized rudeness. I collected a handful of the titty matches for my brother lodge smokers.

This afternoon I try my body further with the trials of surfing on Coronado Island just outside of SD. Again, it will be glorious. I would think I might be sick of the constant 75' weather, but I guess i'm kind of a jerk and love it.

Goose is ready to crack open a Virgin Mary Statue

So last night I finished season 1 of Lost





So after completing the 1st season and figuring out a few things and starting theories (far behind anyone else) I am ready to issue my 1st warning to the creators of LOST




Beware of the XFiles








Its my understanding from talking to some people that Season 2 doesnt reveal many of the secrets that people are pondering. This is a very tricky road.

The XFiles held on to its fan base for years. There were websites and blogs, chatrooms and discussion boards. The fans were strung along for season after season, wanting to know the truth. When it was done most people felt anger over the length of the journey. That the solution wasnt worth the time and distance travelled.
I for one do not look back on the XFiles with as much admiration as I did when I was hooked for the 1st 4 or 5 seasons. I begin to drift away after the Robert Patrick Syndrome and to this day, never even watched the Series finale.

So far I came to several conclusions that Im sure with surface in Season 2
1) The Others always intended on getting Walt due to the fact he is "special"
2) The passengers from the tail section survived. You know this because a) The black woman, Rose, beliving her husband is alive and b) The appearance of Michelle Rodriguez in the Season finale...sitting in section 42f
3) Hurley and the numbers will play a huge role


They had better reveal some stuff about the Hatch and the Beast in the jungle or else Im turning this crap off. Its an adictive road that Im not willing to travel again without some answers.

Break open a statue, Goose is on the smack.

When Jayne met Viper.....

So SIFF is in full swing, and so far I've been pretty lucky and most of what I've seen has been pretty good....

Saturday, after having been up 35 hours straight (more on that later), I found myself doing a double feature @ the egyptian for a film called "Expiration Date" & the FANTASTIC documentary "This Film Is Not Yet Rated".
In between the two films, I'm outside and there's Dallas himself...Tom f'n Skerrit. My friend Jason and I both see him & at the same time. Do we talk to him? What do we say?

"What was it like making out with Drew Barrymore in Poison Ivy?"
"I loved you in Singles!"
"Steel Magnolias: WTF?!?!?"
"I wish I didn't mean this, but Space Camp was the bomb!"
"Dude...you were in the Sci-Fi original movie Mammoth with Summer Glau. Summer Glau also played River in Serenity. That means your only like 2 degrees away from Joss Whedon. Can I touch you?"

Finally, we secure a camera and head on over:

"Mr. Skerrit, would you mind if I got a picture?"
"No, not at all."
>click<
"Thank you"
"Your welcome. Did you enjoy the film?"
"It was pretty good. Thanks again, I've always wanted my picture with Viper."

>walking away<

"Crap! I forgot to ask about Poison Ivy!"

The Golden Child

I am currently bronzing my rock hard jello body in wonderful San Diego, CA. Earlier in the week I hosted my friends wedding in Disneyland, and coasted through a lot of L.A. Friends, its a different story here in San Diego. I got toasty on Ocean Beach yesterday, also known as 'dog beach' by the locals. Due to memorial day weekend the SD recorded 350,000 people on the beaches yesterday. Its glorious. My buddy is going to school down here so i'm staying at his place. There was lounging on the beach with 16oz. Bud Lights. It was glorious. Got the Hawaiian Tropic tanning oil on. I hope to come back with an aura. GLORIOUS GLORIOUS GLORIOUS!

Soon, we will be at Pacific Beach, and I will try my best to go boogie boarding. Everybody living on the beach edges are way hippie looking. Worn out beachhouses with fading paint and chipping plaster line the avenues. Every third word here is, "Dude~~." The girls are fantastic in that healthy beach girl kind of way, also the girl ratio here is insane its like infinity:1. I just bought some Smirnoff Premium Triple Distilled Vodka at the frikking Long's Drug store which I will be carrying on todays beach adventure. I hope you enjoy your mild Seattle weather. Feel assured that I will have a drink for each and every one of you at the lodge, and every glance I take at the bouncy golden bosoms is in your honor.

A rare Lodge Book Review (Or Book on CD Review)

So my job takes me all over the state and I find myself with a fair amount of "Windshield Time". I was getting bored with Talk radio and IPOD songs so I been doing Books on CD. I did 16 hours of the "Da Vinci code", followed up with a siilmiar novel "The Rule of 4", which follows the decyphering of the Hypnerotomachia Poliophili. I just completed my 3rd book which I thought the Lodge and Sci Fi fans might enjoy

Dark Lord: The Rise of Darth Vader






From Amazon.com
Picking up where the last Star Wars movie, Revenge of the Sith, ended,Dark Lord chronicles Anakin Skywalker's emotional transition from angry young Jedi to cold, ruthless Darth Vader. The novel opens on the planet Murkhana, hours before the clone troopers are given the order to turn on the Jedi and slaughter them. Jedi Master Roan Shryne and Padawan Olee Starstone escape death and manage to get off the planet, but not before getting a glimpse of the deadly Darth Vader, the new Sith lord who is the emperor's new right-hand man. But the former Anakin Skywalker is still filled with anger and resentment over what he perceives as the betrayal of his wife and his former mentor. As Sidious and Vader work to destroy the remains of the republic, Shryne and Starstone set out to rescue the remaining Jedi, who are spread out throughout the galaxy.

Gooses take.
Its an interesting read. This book focuses on two areas. The main focus is on Darth Vader. His inner struggles with turning to the dark side and regrets? It goes into detail how Vader lears to live with the suit, how difficult it was to adapt.I loved the details of what exactly the suit does, and how Vader is initially very conscious of how vulnerable his breathing unit is (he's constantly protecting it in a lightsaber duel). His bionic limbs make him clumsy, especially his legs, and he has to relearn his lightsaber technique. He also struggles in his new relationship with Palpatine.
It also tells the story of the aftermath of the Jedi. The Galaxy's view on its survivors. Obi Wans 1st few weeks on Tatooine, and the 1st time he and Bail Organa realized that Anakin survived. Its interesting to see what the remaining Jedi did after Order 66. Part of the book takes place on Kashyk, however the re-introduction of Chewbacca seemed like a strech.

Star Wars Geeks, its a must read. Casual fans. It was entertaining, and the version on CD added music and some sound effects.

Don't mess with the bull, young man, you'll get the horns.

Paul Gleason
1944 - 2006

One of my all time favorite 80's flicks was "The Breakfast Club", and I was totally bummed to see Principal Vernon had passed away this weekend.....

In addition to "The Breakfast Club", he also appeared in such 80's classics as "Die Hard" and "Trading Places".

Honoring Ironhead

Former NFL fullback Craig "Ironhead" Heyward, an 11 year vet with five different teams, died Saturday from a brain tumor at the age of 39. How can you not give credit to the Heaviest RB in NFL History at 328 lbs. (And no the Fridge does not count as a RB)





This is a Story as recalled by Bobby Hebert with a Nice Seattle Angle

Hebert also recalled the time, during a game in 1988, when Heyward hit Seattle linebacker and alleged tough guy Brian Bosworth so hard he made him cry. According to Hebert, then-Saints coach Jim Mora called the same off-tackle play six straight times, with Heyward as the lead blocker. "After about the third time," Hebert said, "Bosworth was crying. Honest. Tears were rolling down his face, because he didn't want Ironhead to hit him anymore. He cried 'Uncle!' for real. Ironhead, he just laughed at him."

Some of you may remeber his famous Zest "Thingy" Commercial

(I tried to find the original commercial on YouTube but failed) Oh well.

My Eyes Have Seen The Glory... But Not In HD

My worst fears have been realized for the upcoming world cup. I took a look at the TV listings that were released. I was hoping with world wide leader would step and show some matches on ESPN numero uno. Na, they have to devote there time to Barry. So the majority of the games will be held on ESPN2 which is fine but friggin Comcast doesn't provide the NW with HD ESPN2. No digital Meat Helmet!! - THANK YOU COMCAST, MAY I HAVE ANOTHER....

Thursday Tradition

Pedro Gomez is the American Idiol

Am I imagining things or does Pedro Gomez moonlight as a singer when he isn't covering Barry Bonds?

I know it's a stretch but it was the first thing I thought about when I saw the picture. For the record, I don't watch "American Idiol" or Pedro Gomez's reports....

"Hold on to your fat sweaty D & D playing headsets, tech support!"

During my lunch break today, I had a few minutes to spare and get by hump day with. So I made my monthly visit to HomestarRunner.com and Strong Bad Email and it didn't disappoint. The newest Strong Bad Email brings us back to our old days at EarthLink, when we mingled daily with the geeks. Now, of course, we mingle daily with a different set of geeks at seperate companies. A vicious cycle.

Also, nice work by the Mariners bullpen last night in the the ninth. 9 runs! And Eddie Guardado didn't even pitch. By the way, it was also nice to see Miami take Game 1 and move towards backing up my prediction of the Heat winning in 6. And if you've never visited Homestar Runner, make sure you check out the following three classic videos. They are definitely worth a watch, especially the li'l brudder bit:

• Strong Bad's creation of Trogdor the Burninator.
  
• The Crying episode featuring li'l brudder.
  
• Teen Girl Squad toons that Strong Bad hosts.

A Cheery Wave from Stranded Youngsters

Inspiration manifests itself in many different forms: sunshine hitting your face while you’re riding Metro, walking amongst evergreens on an overcast day or even finding out about the wonders of barley wine. The list of inspirational events is endless and it varies depending on who you’re talking to and what day it is. Lately I’ve found myself living without a whole lot of inspiration; therefore I’ve been reluctant to give the Lodge a heavy dose of narrative prose that is until I found the universal inspiration last night: live music.

I’ve wanted to write about this band since I started this forumn, but never really had a good reason to do so, until last nights gig at the Showbox. First, you have to understand the country, then you have to understand the club . Finally, you have to get a little pop/punk ethic from a certain 1984 cult-classic if you mix that all together you get one of the greatest bands of the last decade: Mogwai.


My first Mogwai experience happened after I met up with some old friends from back in the Levee City or the 504. The power of word of mouth finally hit me, and the only reason that I’m even writing this is because of the memorable name, not the sound. It wasn’t until eight months afterwards where I would purchase this record and in this brief collection of six songs with titles such as: Stanley Kubrick and Burn Girl Prom Queen I discovered a sound that went beyond the initial layer of emotional feeling one usually gives to music, we're talking Bitches Brew levels. This feeling was not discovering a new sound or band, but being reunited with a sound that had been missing from my soul. Everyone carries a soundtrack to their personal story, after hearing EP+6, I found the emotional core and crescendo to mine.

For years, I had failed in my attempts to see the band perform live and almost resigned myself to accepting the fact that this may not ever happen. Finally, the opportunity arrived last night in the midst of an inspirational-lull that had seemed to be plaguing me for several weeks. Nature usually finds a way to balance itself without the ebb-and-flow getting too out of hand. After the opening set by local Olympia drone-band Earth I was questioning what I was doing out on a Tuesday night and how much tomorrow morning was going to hurt, the blues of the working class slob. Luckily I had the Showbox special of the Dirty Bird (1 shot Wild Turkey followed by a tall-boy of PBR) to get the adrenaline up.

The house lights dimmed with only the laptop glow visible, the five lads from Glasgow all came out sporting matching Celtic FC track tops in a nice touch of fusing one of the world’s greatest bands and the world’s greatest game. As they set loose with a penta-champ set list (unavailable at time of writing) I was amazed at the unbelievable stage presence a band can have without the annoyance of a lead-vocalist. Stuart Braithwaite occupies the middle of the stage with the unassuming charm of the next-door neighbor. The violently-fragile style of Mogwai is accentuated perfectly by drummer Martin Bulloch’s dynamic approach to his kit, blending perfect fills to drive the peaceful moments of the Mogwai sound. Each member of the band has perfected his input and equally they capture the power of Voltron.

Before the show, I was warned about the ‘wall-o-sound’ effect that the band would have on my ears and during the first part of set I abided the warnings with proper protection. I recommend this to anyone for parts of any show that you attend; it grants a better appreciate for the skills that outstanding musicians showcase during a live show. You hear the light strum of a guitar or the precise placement of a minor chord from the keyboard, the very part of live music that makes it surreal and monumentous. With two songs to go in the first set, I pulled the plugs and went naked in order to feel the ‘wall-o-sound’ and take the experience up a notch. They finished the first set with a track from their excellent first LP release “Young Team” that transcended every concert experience that I’ve ever had. The captivating strength by the sound from Mogwai leads to an emotional clarity that I wish everyone was intimate with. I stood with eyes closed as feelings and memories where given technicolor and enhanced sound. The collective conscience of the venue became present when I opened my eyes and I saw other face the reality that we are physical beings.

The encore set was just as unbelievable, including a point were the room was uncomfortably silent with the hollars of men that had apparently followed my suggestion of consuming as many Dirty Birds as possible, and then, like an unsuspecting cow on train tracks we were hit with about 120 decibels from the ‘wall-o-sound’ that made for the final climax in the cinematic undertones of Mogwai’s sound.


The apex of last night and the inspirational/emotional experience that followed will slowly fade from memory only to be stoked again by another tour, but I feel that I would be doing a disservice to myself and the lads for not getting down my thoughts about an unassuming band with an awe-inspiring sound. Please check out this (note during the show they include audio from Madden and Summerall) this and this for musical reference or come talk to the good Doctor for hookup.

Trailer Watch

The announcement just came out that prints of X-Men 3 will include an exclusive Superman trailer as well as our first look at the new ghost rider flick.

City of Gang Stars

There has been a massive chain of violence going on in Brazil the last couple weeks. An organized gang known as the First Command of the Capital or PCC has initiated a series of riots within the prisons and megalopolis of Sao Paolo and Rio de Janeiro. Unbeknownst to me until reading today's Seattle Times article that Sao Paolo is the largest city in all of South America with a populous around 20 million people.

The paramilitary forces of the cities are taking extreme force against the citizenry and those believed involved with the underworld and uprising. Official government tolls the dead at around 100, the coroners office of Sao Paolo indicates the number closer at 270, with such overwhelming numbers they are burying bodies without confirming identity. There's a public secret that the police regularly take extreme measures against gang members with many people disappearing or found dead randomly. I would surmise that this situation warrants them to reach higher degrees of violence than before. Are human rights violations worse even outside of war? They are explicitly unignorable now.

"Under PCC pressure, guards and others said, administrators approved the delivery of 28 television sets to the Avaré prison so that inmates could watch this summer's World Cup soccer tournament."

This organized gang war between the military police and locals was instigated when the government attempted to destabilize the gangs leadership by taking them away from the general prison population. The PCC is a newly developed gang following in the same vein as the more popularized Red Command from Rio's Cidade de Deus or better known by the film we know as City of God. Their reach into the city's government and infrastructure is ridiculous. Not only running the neighborhoods funk dances but jamming on the country as a whole. You can find more info on this gang view of the Commando Vermelho


The desperation of the people is ridiculous, and the desire for survival within the prison system is de facto life or death without a gang. The PCC gang takes hold within the prisons and externally in Brazilian society through a distorted code of honor and bribery. I am even more curious now to understand how their environment was allowed to develop in such a way that there is now an everyday culture of hyperviolence; also, how Brazil became the most populous South American nation and why its government is overshadowed by military, Japan, and gang authority? Its a good time watch the City of God if you haven't, time to rewatch it and review the documentary in the extras section of the dvd, and time to track down City of Men that Jimbo has so fervently promoted.


(amazing how i can write up an informational post in a snap, yet struggle with a 3 page essay.)

FB - aight

I've been stressing out, but
this gives a reality check:
"What's really in Studio 54?"

Also, in followup of futbol:
the Beckham/Posh Interview

X-3 Primer

So I’m off to a screening of X-Men: The Last Stand tonight, and I thought I would offer up a primer for some of the new characters you’ll see in the flick. Now these characters have gone through many incarnations (Ultimate X-Men, Age of Apocalypse, Marvel Adventures), but I’m going to just stick with the main Marvel Universe (Otherwise known as Marvel 616 for those geeks out there).

Beast

Real Name: Henry Philip McCoy
First Appearance: Uncanny X-Men #1
Powers: superhuman strength, speed, agility, endurance, dexterity, acrobatic prowess, night vision, enhanced senses, healing abilities, razor edged claws
Group Affiliations: X-Men, X-Factor, Defnders, Avengers
Notes: Beast was Bryan Singer’s dream character to introduce into the X-Men universe. Finally (with the sad subtraction Nightcrawler) he comes to life. Beast has always been one of the most popular X-men, and he is probably the first to break the “strong guy” mold. Traditionally, the really strong guy on a team or in a comic (Hulk, Thing, etc) have never been all that smart. With Beast, Stan Lee made the brute force of the team also the team genius.
As far as the movie goes, I find the “Kelsey Grammer” casting a little un-inspired. I feel like they’re focusing on the mold of the X-Men cartoon character of Beast which was a tad 2-dimensional.
Recommended Reading: Astonishing X-men 1-6. A cure for mutation is found (Yes, this story was one of the inspirations for the movie) and nobody is more conflicted with this choice more than the Beast.

Shadowcat

Real Name: Kitty Pryde
First Appearance: Uncanny X-Men #129
Powers: phase her molecules into intangibility, letting her move through objects, walk on air, and disrupt electronic systems
Group Affiliations: X-Men, Excalibur
Notes: A really great character who has only really come into her own until the last few years. In many ways Shadowcat is the soul of X-men’s concept. In the comics we got to see her develop from a scared child who struggled with control of her powers, to a young woman working towards peace between mutants and humans (with the occasional all out drag out fight in between).
In the movie, she’s played by Ellen Page who was amazing in the film “Hard Candy”. I’m really looking forward to see how she does in X-Men, especially because Shadowcat is one of my all time favorite characters. I do have one gripe however, the previews make it look like there is a love triangle between her, Rogue and Iceman. What I would much rather see, is some of that blossoming romance between her and Colossus, who have always had a thing for each other in the comics. We already have one triangle established (Jean Grey/Wolverine/Cyclops), why do we need another? The Colossus/Shadowcat story would be pleasing to fans, and allow great character development for both.
Recommended Reading: Astonishing X-men 1-6. Yeah, I’m going here again. This book marked the return of Shadowcat to the X-men. The other reason I’m choosing this book is because the producers of the X-men film actually used the dialogue from this book when screen testing actresses for the part of Kitty Pryde.

Angel
Real Name: Warren Worthington III
First Appearance: Uncanny X-Men #1
Group Affiliations: X-Men, X-Factor, Defenders, Champions, Four Horsemen
Powers: peak human strength, speed, agility, endurance, reflexes, eyesight, and hearing, feathered wings allowing flight, healing power in his blood rejuvenates him and anyone with a compatible blood type it touches.
Notes: From what I’ve heard, you’ve already seen most of Angel’s screen time in the previews, and that’s fine with me. Angel has always been a little bit of a bland character, in need of a writer to come along with a fresh view. In a nutshell, he’s a rich dude with wings. For Angel was his coolest, when his wings were mutilated and removed. He was taken in by Apocalypse and had metal wings grafted onto his back, eventually leading him to become Archangel. A bad mo fo who was just a little on the psycho side.
Recommended Reading: The Mutant Massacre Trade Paperback. The X-men go up against the Mauraders in one of the bloodiest battles the X-men have taken part in. This is the story that led to Angel’s wings getting mutilated, and also featured the first appearance of Gambit (although this wasn’t revealed for nearly 15 years)


Colossus
Real Name: Piotr Rasputin
First Appearance: Giant Sized X-Men #1
Powers: Enhanced Strength, can convert his body into organic steel
Affilations: X-Men, Excalibur
Notes: One of my all time favorite X-Men (or comic book characters for that fact). Collosus, in my mind, is the heart of the X-men. He is a giant of a man, yet probably the most compassionate. Colossus’ relationships with his teammates were some of the most interesting. Of all of the X-men, he was one of the only that Wolverine would call a close friend. Of course, you’d have to be close when your signature move involves being thrown at enemies by the big man himself (the appropriately titled “Fastball Special”)
As far as the movie goes, most of my dread lies with Colossus. In X2 we were treated to a glorious cameo that I still adore. Just that moment of Colossus rushing up to Wolverine saying “I can help you” gives me goosebumps. But from what I’ve seen of him in the film, I’m apprehensive. First off…he looks like crap! Secondly…he shouldn’t look like crap! He looked awesome in the last film, why change it if it aint broke? Also, from what I’ve read he isn’t given much to do in part 3, which is a shame…
Recommended Reading: Uncanny X-men #390. A cure for the Legacy Virus (which was basically an airborne AIDS that only affected mutants) is found…but at what cost? And of course, after reading this, go read Astonishing X-men 1-6 (What can I say, Joss Whedon has made the best X-book in 20 years)

Juggernaut
Real Name: Cain Marko
First Appearance: Uncanny X-Men #12
Unlimited strength, endurance and invulnerability to physical harm, ability to retain forward momentum, rendering him unstoppable while in motion, generate an inercia-canceling force field, mystical helmet makes him immune to psychic attacks.
Notes: He’s the Motherf**king Juggernaut! The thing I always liked about Juggernaut, was that when he usually showed up, all it really meant was a knock down, drag out fight. And every once in a while, that can just be fun. If he’s used right in the movie, he should be a blast.
Recommended Reading: Uncanny X-Men #217-218. Just a big fight w/the Juggernaut that involves him totally owning Dazzler.

Callisto
Real Name: Unknown
First Appearance: Uncanny X-Men #169
Powers: Heightened strength, agility, reflexes, and sensory perceptions, regenerative powers, arms have been transformed into multiple suction tentacles
Group Affiliations: Morlocks
Notes: Callisto was a little before my time, and hasn’t been used much since. I’ve read some of the various morlocks stories, but I’ve never been huge fans of them (with the exception of the Mutant Massacre). I know in the movie she’s going to be one of Magneto’s goons, but beyond that…I don’t have much.
Recommended Reading: Mutant Massacre Trade Paperback. I’ve already mentioned this for Angel, but this series was a very defining moment in the history of the X-men. This is really the first time an X-men story had a real body count. Not an alternate future or Jean Grey destroying a planet, but a bloody much more resonant body count.

Multiple Man
Real Name: Jaimie Madrox
First Appearance: Giant Sized Fantastic Four #4
Powers: create exact physical duplicates of himself upon contact with any amount of kinetic energy
Group Affilations: X-Factor
Notes: I love this character. In the comics, he’s a fantastic character, and his concept has been as fully realized as any character you’re likely to come across. I don’t even want to spoil some of his cooler quirks in hopes that some of you actually read the recommended reading selection. From what I’ve heard about the movie, the Multiple Man is nothing more than a cameo, which is a shame. He’s a really fun character.
Recommended Reading: Madrox Trade Paperback. A Multiple man solo adventure, and a really great one at that. The story itself is basically a film-noir crime story, but with a X-men edge. It’s cool enough reading that even non-comic book fans would probably even dig it.

Psylocke
Real Name: Betsy Braddock
First Appearance: Captain Britain Vol. 1 #8
Powers: Telekinetics allow her to manipulate matter through directed psionic energy, focus her mental energies into a psionic katana.
Group Affiliations: X-Men, The Hand
Notes: For me, depending on the writer, I either seem to hate or love Psylocke. She does make a pretty cool bad ass, but I never seemed to care about her as a character. From what I hear, she’s a bad guy in the movie, and her role is pretty tiny. I haven’t seen the actress they’ve cast her in, but I’m hoping they at least make her psi-knife cool. I always loved that freaking thing.
Recommended Reading: X-Tinction Agenda Trade Paperback. Jim Lee seemed to love to draw Psylocke, and he did a damn fine job of it. This storyline doesn’t really focus on Psylocke, she basically just runs around with Wolverine a lot whooping a lot of whoop@$$.

Omega Red
Real Name: Arkady Rossovich
First Appearance: X-men #4
Powers: Peak human strength, speed, agility, endurance, and reflexes, death factor generates bioplasmic energy to feed the life energy of others into his own storage, retractable carbonadium tentacles that focus the death factor.
Notes: Big Russian dude that likes to give Wolverine a hard time. That’s really all there is to Omega Red. He doesn’t really show up that much anymore, and is really a victim of the “Style over Substance” glut of the early nineties. I have no idea what capacity he is in the movie, but I doubt it’s much.
Recommended Reading: X-men #4-6. The X-men throw down with Omega Red for the first time. Shenanigans ensue.

Yankee - NO HOME

I'm not a big time soccer fan at all, but I was reading this BBC article that just made me understand how weak sauce we are: World Cup fails to fan US football fever. After reading it I couldn't deny or have any antagonistic passion against the review, "duh, of course we don't friggin care." And I recalled the new gatorade ad shown above showing the kind of stuff our guys have to go through. Its like a warzone and the ad is trying to garner our sympathy by showing the trials and tribulations of hostile worldwide football terrorism.

Here's an article summary for those of us Americans too dispassionate to click the news link: the atmosphere at the RFK Stadium was closer to that of a school fete than that of any professional football game I have ever attended. ... there was a collection of small inflatable football pitches and bouncy castles, where queues of children had formed. It summarizes the U.S. attitude and environment on "football" pretty clearly.

What does America need to get rauckus like the rest of the world? I guess we'll just have to have Whitney Houston hopes about it and let the children lead the way.

SOCCER MOMS RULE!

"There are a few things that happened in that game that we wouldn't agree on if we both lived to be 100.''

Ah, the tangled web we weave. Good but not great piece by Peter King in this morning's Monday Morning QB on Holmgren vs. NFL Officials. I've tried to block the SuperBowl officiating out of my mind for the most part. The Hawks look to be stacked and ready to make another run. So the Lodge can hold on to that hope of a return visit and final redemption. Man, the NFL season can't come fast enough, can it?

"Barry Bonds might be part of Baseball History, but Babe Ruth is Baseball"

Wasn't really going to comment on 714 at all because the WorldWide Leader has apparently had nothing else to cover for the past two months, but I came across the following photos and felt compelled to share:

And more importantly, the man that hopefully can withstand the charge from the Balco-Bull:

but here's to Pedro Gomez and his quest to one day cover another story:

MST3K Short

Walton on Sheed

"Before Rasheed Wallace becomes a star in the NBA, he is going to have to grow up. He seems to think the world is against him. Players like Rasheed Wallace act like it’s their birthright to be given millions of dollars and treated like kings. It’s embarrassing for those of us who have spent their lives in the NBA to see such antagonistic, ungrateful, resentful and obnoxious behavior. This guy has just got to wake up. Most people get it eventually, but Wallace is taking his time about it."

The Drive, The Fumble, The Shot and the Return of the King

When we hear those words that are listed above we think a lot of things we think about Michael Jordan’s game winner over the Cav’s and well this writers personal favorite, John Elway’s 98 yards to jubilation and Ernest Byner’s gift to the City of Denver. What most forget to think about are the lasting effects on a city’s sport psyche. The poor city of Cleveland which doesn’t rock when it comes to the sports scene can really be summed up into one scene which of course is the opening to the Movie Major League. Which we see the smoke stacks and factories of this blue collar town while the citizens discuss the outlook for this years Indians and that outlook is not to good just like majority of the teams in the city. Cleveland has not won a major championship since 1964 when The Brown won the NFL Championship. That’s a long time for one town to sit and wait on the door step of penta-champ status. Yeah, the have been on the cusp but how many times can you be on the cusp and get your heart trampled and not loose you will to root?

Finally the King has returned like Otto Graham before him Lebron James has the city believing again al be it with a little hesitation. Nike has a great ad campaign centered on Lebron and the fans baring Witness to his abilities to defy gravity ala Jordan but are they just going to witness and colossal collapse? I can’t see how that is going to happen. I got faith that finally the city can rejoice in a series win which might just propel this team which is made up of has-beens and underachievers with one all out star to a place in the NBA finals. Call it crazy but I would rather take James year 3 over Jordan year 3. The man just elevates his team they seem to get in a zone and keep on going.

I think the only way the Pistons can win this game is if they somehow get John Elway and Jose Mesa to sit on there bench. The sheer cosmic force of those two could single handily destroy the city and leave a radioactive cloud above the skyline for years to come. I don’t see that happening. James vs. Shaq and company starts Sunday.

Da Vinci was French

I went to the pre-screen with my buddy at Pacific Place. Luckily, he gets press passes so we bypassed the line which circled around all the restaurants, and then averted the disastrous line upstairs. He gave me a warning: Usually movies that pre-screen the day before official release suck. All the other movie goers had in tow with them copies of The Da Vinci Code. This book is more well read than The Holy Bible today. Its an unstoppable juggernaut that assaults the New York Time Best-Seller list and Barnes and Nobles bank account. The book maybe exciting and a fun history lesson (for things not faith based), but on film the pace is quick and the characters seem a bit contrived and definitely fabricated. From an art history nerd perspective I had a great time seeing the contrasts on the past into future models found in today, and as a Christian thinker I felt unshaken, if at all irritated, in theology. Talking with my friend about it later I told him, "I doubt that any intelligent person will walk out of that movie feeling like they finally understand God."

A big thing I felt through a lot of the movie was that Tom Hanks character Robert Langdon was really flat. He didn't get a lot of lines, and half the time he was sitting around shaking in fear or walking around. Audrey Tautou as Sophie Neveau took hold of most of the action sans the elven smile. (sidenote: the famous movie Amelie is actually an expansion of a female character from director Wong Kar Wai's 2nd story in Chungking Express) Everybody's favorite wizard Sir Ian McKellan does a fine job of being the mean old man with delusions of changing the world. If it wasn't for his magic I likely wouldn't have enjoyed the film as much. Unfortunately, our friend Leon is too professional in the film and doesn't drive through walls as we'd like to see him do. The jokes were funny, and I was also laughing at all the old women gasping loudly around me at the shock scenes. The ending goes on and on and on and on... right when you think something should be over, it goes on again, and then you think its over, you see something more. In sum, the film is 18th century French: overgrandiose, unfilling, and not as clever as you thought. Go see it for fun. And advance info on the Louvre for you, it was designed by a Chinese American architect I.M. Pei amongst hard french criticism.

***Cave Dwellers: I can also supply you with the "Good News" in addition to my spare copy of the text Da Vinci Code.